Anything but Normal
by CrazyLaviFangirl
Summary: It takes a lot more than super powers, to be a superhero. Movie!verse. OC X Captain America, OC X Tony Stark, slight OC X Bruce Banner
1. Chapter 1

Life wasn't interesting if it was normal right? Everyone strives for something more, something extraordinary that will set them apart from others. But who really wants to be different? Humans strive to fit in, to be part of a group, and when the opportunity to become different pops up, they reside back into their groups. It's where they feel safe, they know the routine and they know their lives will never be in danger as long as they keep to this routine.

I was different, and I was scared. Being different was never easy, and when you knew how different you were from the rest of the world it gave you something to think about. Like why had it happened to me of all people, why I was so unlucky to be blessed with a life far from ordinary?

"You okay, mom?" I peeked into her room, where she lay on her bed motionless. Her eyes shifted over to me; she nodded, allowing me to step inside the room. "I'm going to go shopping. Do you need anything?"

"No…" She replied, her voice sounder weaker than it had the day before. She had been sick all her life, but she normally only had short patches of sickness and then she'd be fine. She'd been sick for months now, and it had gotten to the point where she could no longer move. Her muscles were growing weaker by the day, and soon enough she wouldn't be able to move her body at all. They had requested she be moved to a Hospital, but she had said she wished to die at home rather than in a hospital bed away from her family.

"I promise I'll be back quickly." I made sure she had enough blankets around her before gently closing the door behind me. I shook my head, sighing as I headed outside. I walked down the sidewalk, phone in hand as I texted a few friends. I wasn't in the mood to deal with people at the moment; sometimes my mother's condition had a heavy effect on me, too. It was tiring, not to mention heart-wrenching, when you had to watch someone you loved slowly die.

As I reached the front of the grocery store, I heard loud shouting; there was a scene up ahead. A woman was fighting for her purse with a man much larger than her. He quickly snatched it away, running off in my direction. He breezed by me without a second thought, the woman racing after him and shouting incoherent words. I stopped walking, closing my eyes and zoning in on his footsteps. I tapped my foot against the ground, and listened as the woman let out a gasp of surprise.

The sidewalk beneath the man's foot rose momentarily, to the point it caused him to trip and fall flat on his face. I glanced back; watching as the woman stomped forward, giving the man a good kick before stealing back her purse. The man continued to roll on the ground in pain, complaining of a twisted ankle and a sore forehead. I laughed to myself as I entered the store; I could've done much worse to him that was for sure.

My powers, my little burden as I liked to call them, was that I had a certain amount of control over nature. I could move water with just a push of my hand, I could make the earth move with a kick of my foot, just a simple breath of air could knock down trees; certainly not something anyone had ever been born with before. But I had been, and I hadn't known why. I didn't know where these newfound powers had come from, and I hadn't bothered speaking to my parents about them. They had their own problems to deal with.

I knew I was alone from day one when I discovered them. I had been about twelve or so, and I had been with a good friend of mine at school. We were on the playground, looking at the pond and feeding the ducks under teacher supervision. A bully wandered over, scaring away the ducks and stealing the food from our hands. I remember feeling angry, so angry I just wished he'd drown; the water from behind him rose when I held out my hands to stop him from stepping near me. It splashed down on him with such force he fell to the ground.

No one could figure out what happened, even I didn't know what had happened until I spent all night alone trying to recreate the situation. I sat out by the lake behind our house, hidden in the woods as I willed the water to move again. I created small splashes, but nothing mirroring the large wave that had crashed down upon the bully. I accidentally stomped on the dock from frustration, to which it cracked under my footing.

I had always been warned to never step foot on it without adult supervision around, but I never had been a good listener it seems. I let out a cry of surprise as I fell into the cold lake that was much too deep for my twelve year old self to stand it. I sunk straight down, having never been taught to swim by either parents, and thrashed in the water until I couldn't breathe anymore. My vision was getting blurry when a miraculous thing happened.

It felt as though my body was being engulfed by a force stronger than my own; water began to pool around my arms and legs, and I slowly rose to the surface. As I took a breath of fresh air the water threw me back onto the ground, which I landed on roughly. I was still alive though, and ever since that day I'd go back and try to control the water.

Slowly I learned my limits, and what I could and couldn't do. I learned what it meant to have a secret that no one could know, unless I wanted to be deemed a freak of nature. I knew what it meant to not be an ordinary kid anymore. But I didn't know if that was what I had wanted.

I was washing the dishes in the kitchen when I heard a knock on the door. My father had a late meeting tonight, and my mother was already sleeping so I was forced to answer. A man in a suit stood there, kind smile on his face as he entered my home. I watched him warily.

"I'm Agent Coulson. We have a proposition for you."


	2. Chapter 2

That's the basic story of how I ended up in a giant airship in the sky. I innocently looked around, having never seen anything like this before. Their technology was so advanced; I lived in a small town, where everyone knew each other. A place like that was a true wonder. Agent Coulson seemed amused that I had struck such an interest, leading me around and showing me to where I'd be staying. I liked to call it a 'flying metal death trap.'

"I've got to stop at my locker quickly." I followed wordlessly behind him, not really finding anything that I could do besides follow him like a lost puppy. I peered around his shoulder as I heard voices while approaching the corner.

"Captain America…" I suddenly stated in awe, mouth dropping. He was my hero, a man I'd heard about from my mother and my father. He was brave and strong, and now as I saw him standing before me, I knew he was very attractive as well. He had been a hero in World War 2, one that we'd learned about in History and talked about all over. It had been rumored that he had disappeared for a short time, but here was now, standing before me.

We were approaching him quickly; I nervously kept myself hidden behind Coulson. He looked back at me and smiled.

"A fan of him, too?" I nodded silently, standing beside him again while we passed him by. He had glanced up at one point, nodding at Agent Coulson before continuing his conversation. "Good to see I'm not the only one. I was there when he was sleeping, you know."

I quirked an eyebrow at his odd comment.

"I mean, he was frozen and technically sleeping; I went to see him while he was like that, comes with the job." I nodded my head, following behind him as he entered a large room full of lockers. He reached inside, a smile on his face as he brought out a card pack.

"Whoa, vintage!" I took the cards from his hand, looking through them as he led me away. We began to discuss Captain America again as we entered the main control room. There were plenty of people on the computers around, controlling various things that I had no idea about. The idea of all of this was intimidating but it wasn't my job to control those computers. Apparently, it was to be a hero, which I wasn't too sure I'd be able to do.

"You can keep that one if you want." I looked up at him with wide eyes, looking back down at the shield card in my hand. "For good luck. Once in a lifetime deal." I nodded, quietly thanking him as I placed the card down my shirt to put into my room later. Agent Coulson had been so proud of these cards, he hadn't stopped talking about them since we'd retrieved them, yet he had given me one of them. It felt like he was bestowing on me some pity; I was a kid far out of her league in a world full of superheroes, I'd definitely need some good luck.

"Would you like to meet the rest of them? I take it you read the case file on the way here." I nodded. He had given me a file when he had first called on me, introducing me to the other special people of this world.

Bruce Banner, a green rage machine that was not to be messed with.

Thor, the so called almighty God of Thunder. A very well sculpted God; did all Gods look like that or was it just him?

Natasha Romanoff or better known as Black Widow among S.H.I.E.L.D members, an assassin and the only other woman on the team.

Hawkeye, a master archer and also an assassin with a high skill set and a damn good pair of eyes.

And then, the only other one I knew about was Tony Stark, Iron Man, also known as a Grade 'A' asshole. My father had met him once, and had been completely blown off by him due to him not having a nice rack. Or that's how my father had put it. I had a negative opinion of him already, but I would try to ignore my father's words and see if he really was as bad as my father said he was. I had never had any personal experience with him however; I guess I shouldn't judge him until I'd actually met him.

"You've been quiet." Coulson stated, glancing back at me.

"I'm naturally like this." I flushed, looking away from his questioning gaze. "I try not to embarrass myself, so I tend to keep quiet." He smiled and shook his head.

"You're shy, aren't you? You're a good person, though. With the way you take care of your mother; you're probably her hero." I felt my cheeks grow warmer as I looked down towards my feet. No one had ever said anything like that to me; I had never expected thanks from my mother for taking care of her. It was the right thing to do; after all, she took care of me for a long time. I should repay the favor without complaining; it's not like I minded either. I liked to help people, I liked to make people feel better, and it was just natural of me to worry more about others than myself.

"Excuse me; I'm pretty sure we've got a situation on hand. This is no time to be messing around." A man burst into the room from the door on the opposite side, grimace on his face as he stared down at all of the Avengers. I took an immediate dislike towards this man; he was Nick Fury, the one who had called on me in the first place. He was the guy I wanted to talk to now, to figure out why I had been targeted in the first place.

"Excuse me." I walked past Agent Coulson, and successfully gained the attention of all the people in the room. I gulped, pretending they weren't there as I approached Fury. "I'd like to know why I'm here."

Fury looked me up and down for a moment.

"How's your mother doing?" He finally asked after a few seconds; my eyes narrowed.

"Why does it matter to you?"

"We fixed her sickness; I want to see how well she's handling the medicine we gave her."

"You've brought my mother into this!" A new feeling of outrage spread across my being; Nicks hand rested over his weapon as he watched me warily.

"We've already given her the dosage. She stops taking it; she'll be in more pain than before."

"I never approved of you doing that!" I bellowed. My voice was never loud; I was never loud. I was the quiet little mouse in the corner who prayed to go unnoticed, but the amount of rage I felt stopped me from caring.

"She looks much better now; she can walk and do the things she did before she grew sick."

"But if she doesn't get those dosages she's going to be back to the same way she was before." I crossed my arms. If they had watched me like Coulson had said they did, they would know my weakness was her. To see her in pain cause me great pain; I couldn't have her weaned off the drug. I didn't know the side effects or how badly it would hurt her.

"We'll administer the dosages daily, as long as you stay and become part of the Avengers initiative. We need your help."

"You've got plenty of other perfectly fine super freaks over there! Why did I have to get pulled into it? I'm 18 years old; I shouldn't have to deal with this bullshit!"

"You're perfectly capable of saying no. Only your mother's life is at risk."He shrugged his shoulders.

"Only?" I stepped forward, biting down on my lip to keep any other words from spewing out, words that I might regret later. Nick, and the others for that matter, watched me closely now. "You better give that drug or whatever you're using on her as soon as she needs it, she better not feel another _MINUTE_ of pain, or you'll have to deal with me."

I turned on my heel as soon as he nodded; I stormed past the others, getting a pitiful look from the Black Widow. Walking down the long halls was something that still caused me to get lost; it was good for blowing off steam, however. By the time I'd found my room again, I didn't have the energy to be angry. I flopped down onto my bed, burying my face into the pillow and groaning loudly. Of course this would happen to me; he would exploit my weakness and use it against me.

It looks like I'd be in this for the long haul.


	3. Chapter 3

An hour or so later, after moping around in my room thinking of my predicament, Coulson had braved his way up to my room and requested I come down for dinner. I reluctantly agreed; he had always been kind to me, and I would feel bad if I let my bad feelings about Fury push over onto Coulson. I followed him, head down, towards the room we'd be dining in.

I remained quiet as I sat around the table with the others, looking down at my food with no expression. I had no appetite, after seeing Nick again my anger became refueled. I spoke to no one, preferring to keep to myself. Bruce sat to my left, while Natasha was on my right; I guess that grade A asshole figured they could handle me should I get out of control.

"You should eat." I looked over at Bruce, who had just addressed me. He looked at me, then towards my food before looking at me again, willing me to eat something. I shook my head.

"I'm not that hungry."

"Are you going to waste the food?" Nick watched me from the other side of the table, arms crossed. Any banter that had been going on, mainly between Steve and Tony, had stopped and now all eyes were on us. I looked up at him with contempt.

"Why? Do you plan on blackmailing me into eating the food?" Tony snorted into his drink, bringing the attention over to him.

"I like her." He replied while wiping his mouth and the excess drink that was now on his shirt. A smile flickered onto my face for a brief second, but was gone once everything had gone back to normal. Steve and Tony began to go back and forth and argue again, while Bruce kept to himself. Natasha was having a conversation with Hawkeye, whose name I still didn't know, while I sat alone with no one to speak to. I still didn't fit in, not even among the freaks of society.

Nick was watching me from across the table; I glared over at him as his gaze didn't falter.

"What?" I growled in annoyance.

"You have an attitude problem." He slammed his fist down on the table, causing all the silverware and plates on to the table to shake. It grew quiet again, and the tension grew.

"I don't have an attitude problem. You have a problem with my attitude, so it sounds like it's your problem. Not mine." I earned another snort from Tony across the table, while all eyes were on Fury. He seemed to be thinking over what to say; I could think of a variety of words he'd probably want to be saying to me right now. I didn't care. I didn't belong here, and I shouldn't have accepted his deal. He could have been lying to me; I didn't know the truth of the matter.

"You need to be trained." I raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of subject. "Captain, I believe you're up for the task of dealing with this rambunctious teenager." The blonde captain blushed from across the table, coughing into his hand before nodding his head.

"Yes, sir."

"Start after your done your meal; it doesn't seem like she'll be eating." I ignored him as he addressed me again, instead feeding into the feeling of nervousness and excitement of what was to come. I was going to be trained by Captain America, my long time hero! This was a once in a life time chance; most people who led normal lives never got chances like this.

"Are you ready?" Steve stood up, walking over to stand behind me. "The room is this way." I nodded, keeping my head down as I left the table and followed him. They already seemed well acquainted with the ship, seeing as he could move around here as though it were nothing. I was going to get lost for a long time, unless I didn't bother staying. I could figure out from my room to the place where they kept the food. That was the extent of my knowledge. Knowing where the food was would come in handy later; my growling stomach already began to protest at having turned down some food.

Steve glanced back at me, smile on his face.

"Hungry?" He asked playfully, turning around and handing me a roll tucked away in a napkin. I gave him a confused look, wondering where he had even hidden it in the first place. Or maybe I really just didn't pay any attention. I happily nibbled on the roll, thanking him. "Come on. You need something in your stomach if we're going to get you in shape."

"Oh, right. Can't wait. Gym was my favorite subject in school." I mumbled under my breath, following him into the training room. It wasn't necessarily large; it was just the right size. There were punching bags lined up against the wall, a few treadmills near the back, and large weights placed along dark blue mats.

"I won't go to hard on you the first time. Here, let's start with this." He hooked up a punching bag in front of me, before tossing me some bandages to wrap around my hand. While I did that, he decided to play twenty questions with me.

"What's your 'power' exactly? Fury told us we had to be careful around you until we gained your trust."

"Oh, so he didn't give you the details on me like he did with the rest of you?" He shook his head. "Well, I guess I can show you before I completely pass out from all this exercise." I looked around the room, spotting an old glass of water resting on a rickety table near the treadmill. Steve watched warily as I fetched the glass, asking him to hold it.

I closed my eyes, holding up my wands before gently swaying them back and forth. The water began to swirl in the cup; with a quick movement, I moved my hand up and the water shot towards the ceiling like a fountain. I kept the water bunched together in a tight ball as Steve watched, mouth agape, as I made sure it fell perfectly back into the glass.

"I guess if I don't have any fighting moves, swishing water around in the air wouldn't be really useful." I took the cup from him, placing it back on the table. "I can control fire, too. And the earth. Air, too. It's made for some interesting experiences." I tightened the bandages around my hand, standing in front of the punching bag. "Ready, Cap'n?"

"Yeah." He replied shortly, smiling and shaking his head. "Let's see what you've got."

It turns out I didn't have much. My arms weren't flimsy, I'd played softball when I was younger for about three years, but I had stopped awhile ago. There was some muscle, or that's what Steve said, but I'd need to train for awhile to build it back up. I sighed, wishing I just had a suit of armor to do all the work for me before continuing on with the training. I punched the bag until my hands grew sore and my arms felt as though they'd fall off; he had suggested stopping hours ago but I insisted on pushing my limits.

He had stayed with me the whole time, pointing out any flaws in my stance or punches. He gave me tips, complimented me when I got something right, but as it got later, he insisted that we stop until tomorrow. I respected his wishes, and like a true gentleman he walked me back to my room to make sure I got there with no hassle before leaving for his own.

That crush I had on Captain America wasn't going away any time soon that was for sure.


	4. Chapter 4

The following week, I kept to myself.

I went down to the training room every morning to warm myself up, working my legs on the treadmill for about an hour before I was forced upstairs to eat. After that, I'd disappear downstairs again to practice with the punching bag, and I made sure to keep Steve's tips in mind. I had to keep my body moving quickly, I had to stay agile or I'd be an easy target and a burden on the others. I wanted to be useful, I didn't want to be that person in the group that always needed saving.

By the end of the week, my hands were bruised and my legs beyond sore. I'd felt as though I'd pulled a muscle; I expressed this thought to Tony who suggested I talk to Dr. Banner about it. I hadn't had any interaction with him before, so I nervously walked into the room where he and Tony were. They were both working away at the computers, watching the screens; when I entered Bruce noticed me first, and sent me a kind smile.

"If it isn't our newest member. Haven't seen you around here much."

"I've been busy." Tony looked up at me, looking me up and down before going back to his work. "But, uh… I heard you were a doctor and…" I blushed and looked down in embarrassment.

"Yes? What is it?" He walked away from the computer, looking me over. His eyes were much more innocent than Tony's when they looked me over, however. "You don't seem to have anything wrong with you."

"It's just my leg… I think I may have pulled a muscle or something…" He nodded, kneeling down and looking at my legs.

"Which leg?"

"Right." He touched the back of my leg gently, pressing against certain points. I inhaled sharply as pain shot through my leg and I flinched. He chuckled softly.

"Your leg is bruised right there, you may have pulled a muscle, but it's not torn. Just put some heat on it before you go to bed, and it'll be fine in time. Try not to push yourself to hard." He gave me another kind smile before returning behind his computer. I thanked him, glancing one more time at Tony before leaving the room.

I hurried down the hall, wondering where I'd get a heat source when I ran straight into what felt like a brick wall. I fell back onto the floor, still registering what had just happened. Thor towered above me, looking down on me in confusion.

"Humans are so tiny." He muttered under his breath. "Are you alright, tiny girl?"

"I'm fine." I replied quickly. "Are you sure you're not the god of brick walls?" He looked at me, confusion written all over his face. I sighed, blushing and excusing myself back to the training room. Steve had taken over the punching bag, and I watched with awe as he relentlessly punched it until it flew across the room. He panted heavily, dropping his stance before turning to look at me.

"You should be resting, not down here." He walked over to place up another punching bag. "Fury called for a meeting tomorrow to discuss the situation about the Tesseract; you should get as much rest as you can before we're called to action."

"I guess I should be going to bed then. Goodnight, Cap'n."

"Goodnight." He gave me a small nod before he got back into his fighting stance. My eyes drifted towards the muscles flexing on his arm before my cheeks began to heat up. I was still a teenage girl, and the movie we watched about him in school never really showed off how muscular he was. Or how handsome and kind he was.

I didn't feel like dealing with Fury after a whole week of not having to see or hear his voice; I didn't voice my unhappiness as I entered the room however. The rest of them weren't even there yet, only Fury, who was looking over his computer with interest. I took a seat at the table in the middle, ignoring him completely until other people were around. Bruce and Tony came together, followed by the others.

Tony and Bruce both grabbed the seat on my right side, sharing a look as Bruce gave up the seat for Tony. The Iron Man slid into the seat beside me, inching the chair slightly closer to me before facing Fury. I looked at him suspiciously from the corner of my eye, before turning to look at Steve, who slid into the other chair beside me.

"How's your leg?" Bruce asked from behind Tony, forcing me to face him and Tony.

"It's better now. I guess I still shouldn't train."

"What exactly do you do?" Tony addressed me for the first time since I'd met him. "I mean, you're obviously not a genius such as I or the good Doctor over there, and we've already got a soldier, and a pair of assassins. So, what is it, exactly, that you do?" I glared at him, the rude tone of voice he spoken to me with instantly grating my nerves.

The water glass he had brought in with him was lying in front of him, probably there due to his hangover from the night before. I raised my hand quickly, earning a raised eyebrow from him. The water from his glass splashed his face and hair, causing him to sputter in surprise. I smiled proudly as I heard Steve snicker from my other side. I pulled the water from his hair, allowing the small ball of water to land back in his glass.

Tony grabbed his glass, swishing the water around inside of it as he observed it.

"Thanks, I love hair in my water." He muttered dryly, placing the glass back down onto the table.

"Let's get down to business." Fury slammed his hands on the table to gain the attention of everyone "We've been tracking down Loki, but we need more time. We need to draw him out, think of what he's planning next. All around the world, things have been going downhill, so I've decided that while we're still waiting for Loki's position to be revealed… All of you will be going on side missions. We all have our means of communicating with one another. I give you a file, you complete the task, and then you come back, got it?"

So now I was going to be forced to go on missions? I guess it was what I had expected; I just wasn't prepared to completely leave my mother without any way to communicate with her.

"I have three case files now. You're paired with the person next to you, two per group." I was glad Steve had sat on my side; it meant I'd be working along with him instead of Mr. Hangover. I felt bad for Banner, but maybe he didn't get the attitude like I did from him. Steve stood up, taking the case file with him as the rest of the group scattered to prepare. Only Tony, Steve, and I lingered back for a few seconds.

"Wait." Fury called out before I could leave. "Stark, what's your mission?"

"Burglar." He muttered with a bored expression, holding up the yellow folder. "Do I get a trade-in?"

"No." Fury replied impatiently. "But you do get a switch of partners. You'll be working with her. Rogers, you'll be working with Banner."

"Are you kidding me?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at the man standing in front of me. "Why do we have to switch partners?"

"Good question." Stark stated. "I'm too powerful to stop a burglar, she's too weak."

"Excuse me?"

"You're a teenage girl who can splash some water around; Oh, Mr. Burglar let me interrupt your meal by splashing you in the face. I'm sure he'll wet himself in fear."

"I suggest you watch your tone, Stark." Captain America warned from behind me. "Without your suit she could beat you in a fight, hands down."

"Want to bet on it?"

"Enough." Fury bellowed. "My word is final; get this mission done or you will both suffer the consequences."

"I'm already suffering." I growled under my breath, turning on my heel to go to my room. Agent Coulson popped up in the doorway before I could stop, holding his hands up defensively over his chest.

"I've got your suit ready for you, if you just follow me." Seeing it as my chance to leave this nerve grating conversation, I nodded.

"Meet you by the planes in twenty, munchkin." Tony called out, heading off towards his room before I could find the proper object to throw at his face. Steve shot me an apologetic look, but like the good soldier he was, he obeyed his orders and walked away to tell Banner of the partner reassignment. Damn, I was looking forward to seeing him in action in person too.

I followed Coulson as he led me towards the locker room, where in the far corner a skin tight black outfit hung.

"It stretches to fit you how you want it to." He took it from the hanger and handed it to me. "Fireproof and waterproof, thought that'd be usual for you. I helped design it after all. I added a special touch just for you." He pointed towards a part on the shoulder, where a miniature version of Captain America's shield was sewn in. I couldn't say I didn't like it; a bit tight for my taste, but otherwise it was comfortable.

"Thank you, Agent Coulson." I pulled the trading card out of my shirt, where I had been carrying it around with me for days. "This will be my good luck charm, alright? When I look at it, I'll be fighting for you, and for my hero." I handed him back his card, smiling as he smiled back at me.

"Good luck, hero." He saluted me, leaving me on my own as I went to meet up with Stark. I stood by the plane that was being prepared for us, arms crossed as I watched the entrance and waited for him to arrive. The others slowly trailed in, Steve and Banner coming over to stand with me while I waited for my partner.

He walked in, completely suited up in his Iron Man gear as he joined us, only his helmet not covering his face. How unfortunate, it meant I'd still have to hear him talk. Steve looked at me.

"You could ride along with us; we could drop you off at the same place as Stark if you don't want to fly with him." Steve whispered as we both watched Tony stagger into the aircraft.

"I can handle myself Captain, don't worry." I smiled at him before running into the aircraft after Tony. I waved goodbye to the good Captain, sighing as I realized I wouldn't see him for awhile.

I had a feeling this mission was going to be a long one.


	5. Chapter 5

"Do you mind if I play some Black Sabbath?" The music blasted through the whole aircraft, causing me to look over at him in annoyance.

"Don't think you would've cared if I said no anyway." I grumbled unhappily, crossing my arms and glaring at him. He raised an eyebrow, holding his hand up to his ear and mockingly asking me to speak louder. I decided lunging at him now wouldn't be safe for my health, seeing as we were still flying a plane and I hadn't mastered the element of flying as of yet.

I took another look at the case file, opening the yellow folder on my lap and holding up his profile. He was a white male, around 50, with a large scar on his arm. He had been spotted in Loki's crew when they had first found him; S.H.I.E.L.D has been watching his movements since he's gotten back in the picture, and have decided he's too dangerous to have roaming the streets. Our job was to bring him in, interrogate him on what he knows about Loki, and then hand him over to the police. The problem was, the man was a retired pro-wrestler, and was probably about 3 times my size. Tony wasn't exactly a beefy guy either, but Iron Man would just be overkill.

What on earth did they expect us to do?

I reviewed the case files a few more times before we landed at a designated spot that S.H.I.E.L.D had prepared for us. I couldn't help but smile at the beautiful scenery of the small town in Georgia; I had always wanted to visit a small town like this. Never live here though, the quick paced city life was the only life for me. A short vacation was never too bad, though.

Tony didn't seem to like the countryside as much as I did; he winced every time he heard someone speak with a country accent. Which meant that ugly grimace remained on his face as we passed through town. We walked down the street, and towards the small area where the burglar would often strike.

"What do we do from here?" I asked him curiously. We were attracting plenty of attention to ourselves, although I wasn't known as an international superhero, Tony was known worldwide. I didn't enjoy the amount of attention being placed on us, or me for that matter. When a crowd had gathered, Tony began to suck up the attention readily.

"Yes, yes, it is I, Iron Man. I'll sign autographs later, yes I am fantastic aren't I?" He grinned towards a girl, causing her to swoon slightly. Even I had to admit he had a nice smile, but the hollow meaning behind it was what threw me off. It all just felt misleading.

I felt a strange feeling, the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. I turned quickly, enough to see a figure disappear down an alley. My curiosity piqued, I gave Tony one last glance before sneaking past the crowd. I crouched down behind the dumpster, staying low to the ground as I advanced. I stood up straight as I turned the corner and saw the dead end. I walked to the end, touching the wall and running my hand along the surface of it.

I could have sworn I had seen someone back here, but it may be my nerves just getting to me. The sound of gravel crunching hit my ears; I whipped around in time to avoid a knife being thrown at my face. Before I had the chance to strike back I was pressed up against the wall, the hand of my assailant gripping my throat tightly. I grabbed onto his wrist, squeezing as I tried to push away his hand.

"Don't follow me, little girl." The man hissed in my ear.

"Don't tell me what to do." I head butted him, sending him tumbling backwards from surprise. The punching bag was nothing compared to a live, moving target. I felt the adrenaline pump through my veins as he launched at me again and I ducked under his arms. I should have trained more with Steve.

It didn't look like I'd be having that chance.

I winced as I was easily overpowered again, being thrown to the ground with ease. The man let out a dark chuckle, retrieving the knife while I still lay in shock. I willed myself to stand, but the immense pain in my back stopped me from being able to move. I watched, helpless, as I was approached.

A loud cry came from the burglar above me as a force much stronger than him threw him into the wall. Iron Man sauntered past me, fist raised.

"Hasn't anyone taught you any matters? Hitting women is a no-no." I groaned as the pain subsided and I pushed myself up, only to see the egotistical jerk holding up the burglar we'd been sent to catch by his leg.

That mission had been over sooner than I had figured it'd be, with the burglar thrown in the small county prison to be shipped to a more secure area. We had tried our hand at intimidating him and accessing any information he held about Loki, but the criminal's mouth was sealed. Tony's constant condescending attitude and snarky remarks sealed the deal; we were getting absolutely no information from him.

I had fallen into an odd state of depression. I couldn't live down the situation I had cornered myself in; not only had I gone alone, I had gotten beaten too. I had gotten stage fright; if I had remembered my powers maybe I would have done better. But there was a new fear that had run through my body, I had panicked and been completely embarrassed. If I couldn't survive in a mere fight against someone as simple as a burglar, how could I expect to be of any help?

I was useless.

I didn't speak much, ignoring the jokes coming from Tony. He had finally seemed to get fed up with my attitude when we were flying the small aircraft back to the headquarters.

"Look kid, you win some, you lose some. It's a fact of life that everyone has to deal with. Well, not me, I always win after all, but-"

"If you're trying to help, you're doing a very poor job of it."

"Got you to talk, didn't I?" He winked. "You should drink more kid."

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Not sure, sounded better than my last piece of advice." He shrugged his shoulders. "Drink more, stay in school, those are the only ones I know." A smile made its way to my face, and I avoided his smug smirk. Looks like if his goal was to cheer me up, he was still winning.

Maybe he wasn't as bad as I thought he was.


	6. Chapter 6

"I have a request."

Nick Fury looked up at me as if I'd grown three heads and suddenly pronounced my undying love for him. I hadn't wanted to speak to him either, but I was feeling bothered by the fact I hadn't seen my mother in a few weeks. I wanted to make sure she was okay and living well while I was gone. I would get over my initial dislike of this man if it meant getting to see my mother again.

"And what would that be?" I already didn't like the tone he was using.

"I want to visit my mother." He raised an eyebrow, pursing his lips.

"I'll think about it." He finally replied. I opened my mouth to protest, but realized if I said anything and continued on with this conversation it'd mean nothing but trouble. I gave him a forced smile and exited the room, walking with my head down towards the training room. I had learned to take out my stress on the punching bags, since I had no one I could talk to in this giant airship.

Hour after hour passed, and my muscles began to ache. I had taken that as a sign meaning I'd better be getting to my room. The dinners around here were less formal then they were when I had first come; it was rare for any of us to eat at the same time. We came and went as we pleased, although both Bruce and the good Captain would ask me if I'd eaten if they saw me around this time. It was sort of nice to think they were somewhat looking out for me, but it wouldn't matter after this Loki fellow was captured.

I could go back home and be with my mother after this. The thought of my beautiful mother but my mind at ease, and a smile easily came to my face when I thought of her. She had been the only thing that could cheer me up; otherwise I became downtrodden and depressed again upon remembering my failure. My heart ached; I wanted to see her again.

Whenever I thought, I wandered around aimlessly, stuck in my own mind as my legs moved. It was hard for me to think if I wasn't moving around, and I had to give the poor muscles in my arm a break. They were beginning to get toned, and I definitely felt stronger, but compared to the others I was still a small weakling.

Just like Tony said.

"Have you eaten yet?" I was broken from my reverie by the kind voice of Bruce Banner. I looked up to see him standing in front of me, curiously looking me over.

"Uh, I was on my way to the kitchen now."

"It's in the opposite direction." He replied, smiling as he didn't completely call me out on his lie. This is why I could appreciate him; he may poke and prod like Tony does, but he doesn't go as far. He didn't make me feel like a completely useless tool. I smiled weakly at him.

"Right. I was just thinking."

"About what?" The question caught me off guard.

"I'm sure it's nothing that'll interest you." I looked away from his gaze. "I doubt it'd keep your interest."

"Try me. I'll walk you to the kitchen." We started to walk down the hall side-by-side as he once again asked me what was on my mind. If I didn't start trying to fit in now, I would never win, and he had to be one of the kindest on this airship. He at least wouldn't blatantly make fun of me to my face and call me names like a certain man of iron.

"I just… I miss my mother. A lot. We're close, and with my Dad always on business meetings, it was always just me and her. He's away too much for his own good, and she doesn't like being alone. So we'd always do things together like read, or draw. Even watching television was fun with her. I could tell her anything and everything without her judging me, without her thinking I'm crazy. And no matter how stupid I sounded, she would always have a kind word to say"

"Your mother sounds like one of a kind." Bruce smiled. "I'm sure Fury wouldn't mind you visiting her."

"I hope not." I replied; silence filled the air between us. It wasn't an uncomfortable one though; I felt incredibly comfortable talking to Bruce. It just felt as though I could confide in him without any trouble.

"If you ever have any problems…" He stopped speaking as I looked over at him. We stopped in front of the doors to the kitchen. Bruce began to rub the back of his head sheepishly, a shy smile appearing on his face. "It's not good to keep everything bottled inside, it'll eventually erupt into something worse; trust me, I know. If you need to talk, just come find me."

"Thanks. I might take you up on that offer."

I bid him farewell, noticing the light blush that appeared on his cheeks as he walked away. I stepped into the kitchen, only to meet an arguing pair of Avengers. Tony and Steve were at it again, this time arguing over food. Captain America preferred the good old fashioned hotdog, while Tony preferred a delicious burger. Would the fighting ever end? The world may never know.

"What're you smiling at?" Tony asked abruptly, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Smiling? I'm not smiling." I replied quickly, turning to hide my face from his view. I grabbed an apple from the fridge before turning around to face them.

"Right. And I'm not the best looking person in this room." Tony muttered sarcastically.

"You're right, Steve is pretty attractive. Maybe that's why you fight with him so often; try not to let your hormones get the best of you, Stark." I grinned in triumph as both of their jaws dropped, and they looked at each other uncomfortably. Maybe now they'd stop fighting for a little. As I was about to exit, I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Wait. Fury told me he was looking for you; he wants you to go see him as soon as you can." Steve looked at me with a bit of worry in his eyes. "You didn't get into more trouble, did you?"

"Nothing like that, don't worry." Although it was sweet of him and it did make my heart flutter when he touched me. "I just requested something from him. Guess I'll see how that turns out, thanks Captain."

"Call me Steve." I raised an eyebrow as he spoke so quickly I almost didn't understand him. "I like it more when you call me Steve."

"Alright, Steve. I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight to both of you, especially you hormone boy! Try not to take up all the washing machines again."

"Can't help it if I have laundry…"

I smiled as I walked out of the kitchen, and headed towards Fury's office. For the first time in a long time, I didn't have a feeling of dread resting in the pit of my stomach. It was the first time in days I must have smiled and felt this good. I guess if I actually talked to all of them, I wouldn't feel as alone as I normally did. I didn't feel alone right now, after all. I felt wanted and liked.

"You wanted to see me, sir?"

"I've already made my decision, no need to butter me up with sudden respect." I looked down in embarrassment. "I was surprised when you came to me and asked; after the few weeks you've spent here working alongside the Avengers you have been nothing but abrasive. However, I've realized that perhaps it is the change in life styles that is causing your disrespect. I will let you visit your mother; Agent Coulson will accompany however. Safety measures."

"Oh, thank you so much!" I leaped forward, hugging the man before me tightly before leaving the room. I felt so happy, I felt like skipping and singing and crying at the same time. I had such an overpowering feeling of happiness that I didn't know what to do with myself. I was going to see my mother, I was going to be home and comfortable… and dare I say, normal, for one day.

But he was right. I'd have to get used to not seeing her, I'd have to get used to being around the others. They were sort of my family now, they'd be the ones I'd have to protect in battle and hope they extend the same service to me. I could always pretend, even if it was just for one day, that I was normal again. Just a normal kid, going home to eat dinner and have a fun night with her mother. Nothing abnormal about that.

I fell asleep with a smile on my face, and for the first time in many nights I didn't have a nightmare.


	7. Chapter 7

To see my own house again was a relief; nothing had changed since I'd left a few months before. But it also raised question that I wasn't sure I wanted the answer to. Did people notice I was gone? Did they even care? I knocked on the door, forgetting that this was even my house.

It had been so long since I'd been here.

Agent Coulson stood behind me, suit on as he fixed his tie. He had been happy to escort me back home for a few hours. I had to say, he was definitely my favorite among the crew onboard that airship.

"Who is it?" I heard my mother's sweet voice call from the other end; a smile immediately found its way to my face.

"The devil in all her glory." I replied. The door flung open to reveal her new healthy appearance. She looked me up and down quickly, shock written all over her face before she enveloped me in a hug. She began to stroke my hair like she had done to comfort me when I was younger; I felt tears prickle my eyes as I enjoyed the moment where nothing was on my mind.

I wasn't a hero in training. I was just a normal kid, coming home from summer camp and hugging my mother who I had missed dearly. Dreams had always been better than reality.

"Come in!" She ushered Coulson and I inside. "I was just making a pie. There's not much to do around here, you know."

"It smells wonderful." Coulson walked past both of us to the kitchen, letting us be alone in the living room for a moment. I looked her over for the first time since I'd been gone; she did look much healthier. Her cheeks had that rosy glow they used to before she'd gotten sick; her eyes and smile were bright and not worried about impending death. She looked good as new.

"How are you doing, sweet pea? Are you eating properly? Getting proper amounts of sleep?"

"I'm fine mom." I replied with a small smile. "I just missed you, that's all."

"You need to talk?" She asked softly. "You only look at me like that when you have something to talk about. Sit down for a second; our good agent is busy with my pie." She plopped down onto the couch, patting the seat beside her which I gladly took. I was under orders not to give away any of my missions, but was it likely I'd ever listen to Fury?

I told her exactly how my mission with Tony had gone, and how the week after had been terrible. By the end of my story I was near tears, the feelings of depression began to come back. She looked down, her eyes remaining on her hands that were clenched on her lap. I couldn't blame her for her silence; had many parents been in a situation where their child was actually a hero in training, being recruited to save the world from an approaching danger?

"I can't say much about this, because I've never been through it dear. But I can say one thing…" Her hand found my cheek, forcing me to face her and look her in the eyes. When I looked into them I found pride, and realized the unconditional love my mother had for me. "Always remember… You're my superhero. If you can be brave for me like you've done after all these years… You can be brave for yourself, too."

"I hope so…"

"That was delicious pie."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it Agent, it's my specialty." My mother smiled across the table at Coulson, who had just finished off his third piece of pie. While they talked, I stood up and took their plates away to the kitchen. As I began to wash the dishes, I wondered where my father was. I hadn't seen him in an even longer time, since his job normally took him away for months, and I was curious if my mother had spoken to him about this unusual situation. He didn't always answer her calls when he was away, something about being busy and looking professional, but I think that's a load of crap.

I had gone into his phone once while he was home, and there had been received calls from a certain number several times. I wasn't one to assume things, but the mere fact he could answer this number and not his dedicated wife's number was irritating. He'd caught me, and I had confronted him; we hadn't spoken for a long time after that. He eventually spouted out some excuse I can't bother to remember, because I know it's a complete and total lie. Should I have told my mother?

She had been sick for so long, I don't think delivering bad news was something she needed or wanted. So I kept my mouth shut like the good little daughter I was; I still couldn't bring myself to truly trust me father again.

Was he doing it again? Was he running around behind our backs or was he truly just very busy? I didn't have the time to worry about this; the only reason I cared was because I didn't want my mother left home alone. She needed someone to spend her days with when I wasn't here, but what could I do about it? My father would sooner jump into a pit of lava before he quit his job; my mother's illness meant she couldn't travel with him either. She was forced to stay in one place, and he was forced to travel around constantly.

Now that I look at it, their marriage has always been strained.

"Dear!" My mother snapped me from my memories, waving a hand in front of my face warily. "Your friend says it's time to go." I sighed unhappily, putting the dishes away for her. "What're you doing, honey?"

"Washing the table?" I looked at her confused as I brought the wet cloth across the table; Agent Coulson was smiling from the doorway.

"You haven't done that since you were a little girl." My mother crossed her arms. "I've got it handled, sweetie. Go on." Her words didn't match her expression; I could tell deep down she didn't want me to leave. My mother had sacrificed her happiness for mine many times before; I wished I could figure out a way to make her happy again.

She gave me a hug; I buried my head in her shoulder, wishing for nothing more than to stay for a few more hours. All good things come to an end however, and as we were walking down the street towards the area where he had landed the plane. Coulson was whistling a cheerful tune as I suddenly stopped.

"That's it!" I exclaimed with a smile, turning towards the shop I was standing in front of. "Coulson, do you have any money with you?"

"Well, yes. But-"

"Come on, then!" I grabbed his arm, pulling me along with me into the store. The smell of animals immediately rushed to my nose, which scrunched up in disgust. I heard the yipping of dogs, squawking of birds, and the territorial screeches of cats. The pet store owner looked at me with curiosity; it's not often a girl wearing a full black skintight body suit walked into a pet store with a fully suited up man wearing sunglasses.

"Why are we-"

"Hush Coulson, I'm observing." I held out my hand to stop him from speaking again, my eyes traveling over every single animal in that store. I wanted one that'd keep my mom safe, so slightly larger than normal, and one that would also be nice for cuddling, so fluffy was added to the trait list.

I heard a slight whimpering from down the line, and my eyes traveled to meet a rather beaten up looking dog. It was a sight for sore eyes that was for sure. Its fur was matted and patchy; it didn't even move from its spot on the floor. It lay down and looked up at me with sad eyes. I kneeled down, reaching over to gently stroke its head. It flinched at my touch for a moment, before closing its eyes and relaxing again.

"You've had a rough time, haven't you buddy?"

"What kind of dog is he?" Coulson asked from behind me. The pet store owner walked over, looking down at the dog with a frown.

"A family from up north came down and just left him here; we're going to send him off to the pound if no one buys him."

"What's his name?" I asked.

"He doesn't have one." The owner shrugged. "Didn't have the time to think of one, only been here a few days."

"How sad. Everyone deserves a name." I leaned over, picking up the medium sized dog and holding him in my arms. He licked my cheek, his paws resting on either side of my shoulders. "I'll name you King. And my mother will take good care of you. She's good at making others happy; you'll feel welcome there. How much is he?"

The store owner looked taken back, but gave a price that was reasonable. I looked over at Coulson, who took the hint and began to pull money from his jacket. I don't think the store owner had ever seen that much money simply pulled from a hidden pocket in a suit. As he paid, I gathered the supplies she'd need to take care of a little puppy. Hopefully it wouldn't cause her too much trouble; I knew it'd help her loneliness, at least.

I happily carried the puppy back down the street in my arms, while the poor Agent held onto all the supplies needed. I was humming happily, glad I had thought of something that would be good for my mother for once. She had looked out and taken care of me for so long; it was time that I started doing it for her.

As I approached the house, I noticed a car that hadn't been there. My father's car. It looked like he had come home just in time; I approached the house faster in anticipation for seeing my father. From the outside, however, I stopped. I could hear yelling from within, which was unsettling; my parents never fought, I had never heard my mother raise her voice before in my life.

"Don't you dare tell me what's good for our daughter when you hardly spend any time with her! You should have seen her when she came home, she's completely exhausted. She's having a hard time up there all alone-"

"You can't coddle her forever; you knew this was going to happen eventually. I don't want to hear another word on it, what's done is done."

"**Don't treat her like she's some toy you can mess around with!" **My mother's voice could have shaken the whole house. "She is my daughter, and I will not let you ruin my life again! I will not let you hurt my daughter."

"Her situation is entirely different from yours."

"That's not the point!" I was beyond confused at the moment, and decided it'd be best if I didn't hear more. I knocked on the door, hearing some murmuring from within before it swung open. My dad stood there in all his glory, looking down at me curiously. I gave him an annoyed look, pushing past him and walking into the kitchen to greet my mother.

She was sitting at the kitchen table, face in her hands as she tried to keep herself together.

"Mom." Her head popped up as she heard my voice, her eyes traveling over to the dog wagging it's tail in my arms. She immediately smiled, reaching out to hold the poor animal.

"Hello there, sweet pea. Will you look at that?" She began to cradle the dog as though it were a baby, rubbing his belly and planting a kiss on his head lovingly. "What's this little guys name?"

"King. And he's all yours." My father walked into the kitchen after helping Coulson with all the supplies.

"I don't remember agreeing on having a dog in the house." My father stated in annoyance, looking at the creature with disgust. Of course he would; if it's not a prim, proper purebred dog, it's not good enough for him.

"I guess it's a good thing that you'll never be around to see it, huh?" I remarked coldly, not meeting his eyes. I was trying to make sense of what they were saying, trying to connect the dots but I was missing too much information to know what they were talking about. Sure enough my father had ruined plenty of things for my mother and I, like having a none dysfunctional family for one. But nothing that would ever bring serious harm to me. Nothing that would cause my sweet, caring mother to raise her voice and sound so angry.

Knowing he would not win if he argued back with me, he went upstairs and left the three of us alone. My mother gave an exhausted sigh, grabbing the dog bowl and putting some water in it for King. She looked at the two of us with a tired smile.

"Shouldn't you be heading out?"

"Do you want me to stay?" I asked. "If dad's giving you trouble…"

"The one good thing about your relationship with him is that you keep him in his place, dear; don't worry about me. He'll be leaving again in a few days for a business meeting regardless. I'll have cute little King here to keep my company." She leaned down to pet the dog who was happily licking his bowl dry. "We'll have a great time, right, boy?" King let out a little yip in response, weak bark for a dog his size, but maybe it'd improve with time.

Coulson and I made our way back to the ship, and were there as the sun was setting. As we flew back to headquarters, my mind wouldn't stay silent. Suddenly a bad feeling was welling up in my stomach, and I didn't understand why. One clear question remained on my mind though.

What had they been talking about?


	8. Chapter 8

"Are you alright?" Agent Coulson looked over at me worriedly as we were returning to the airship. I shook my head, looking away from him. In all honesty, I was incredibly confused about the day's events. I hadn't gotten so much as a hello from my father, and I'd heard things I wasn't supposed to hear. The worst part of it was that the good Agent had heard as well, but had said nothing about it. It was odd; like he already knew exactly what my father was talking about.

I didn't feel right questioning him on it; I'd feel bad about accusing someone who'd been so nice to me when I'd first arrived. I decided to keep my mouth shut, and to figure it out myself. I could start by trying to find my file in the S.H.I.E.L.D computers when we were back on base. I wasn't computer savvy per se, but I know someone who is.

"You need me to what now?" Tony smirked as I glared. It was killing my pride right now for me to admit that I couldn't do something that he could; he was basking in this, I could do. Begrudgingly, I repeated my request for him. If it wasn't for the fact Bruce was sitting in the room with him, I might've attempted to murder him and hide his body so that he would never mention this to anyone.

"I need to see the file S.H.I.E.L.D has on me. I think my father might've had some connection to them. I just need to check, alright? Can you do it or not?" He chuckled.

"Of course I can. But the question is, what can you do for me?"

"I can try to hold back the urge to punch you in the face every time I see you." He raised an eyebrow again, before extending his hand.

"You've got a deal." I shook his hand. "Shouldn't take too long." He circled around to stand beside Bruce, who was now regarding me curiously.

"Why do you need access to your file?" He asked. I shook my head, not wanting to explain to him. He nodded in understanding, moving over so that I could stand between him and Tony. I watched as Tony made quick work of the security system, with some help from Bruce. A picture of my face popped up, followed by paragraphs of script. I leaned forward, scanning for anything pertaining to what my father had said and finding nothing.

"What exactly are you looking for?"

"Anything about my origins. Wait. How about… typing in my mother's name."

"Got it sweetheart." Tony typed it her name as I told him it, breaking through the security code once more. It was tougher this time around, however. It was under heavier lockdown than my own, which was suspicious in it's own right. I frowned as I read over the text.

It gave me no defining information, however it did say my father was arrested and thrown in jail at one point due to 'suspected abuse' of my mother. She has questioned, and after denying all of the charges pressed against him, he was released. At the time, he had been a scientist working for a big corporation on a secret project. There was a cliffnote that the project was more detailed within my fathers file.

Another thing that caught my notice was her status report. She had gone missing for years, laying off the radar until recently. It noted that she had contracted her deadly illness after my father was released, and that further investigation was going to be conducted. My father had been under close observation due to him being a former scientist for S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Think you could hack one more file, macho man?" Tony winked.

"You know I can." I felt as though the only reason he was cooperating with me was because he wanted to show off his intelligence. I had heard him mention it enough in his fights with Steve to know that he had a serious superiority complex compared to the kind Captain. Having confidence was a different story than being arrogant; one trait was admirable, the other gets you killed.

Even though Tony annoyed me greatly, I didn't wish for him to get killed. It hasn't happened so far, so I don't know what I'm worried about. All of them around here can handle themselves much better than I can.

"Hm, the file seems to have been deleted." Bruce muttered under his breath as the words 'file removed' flashed across the screen. "They must not want this information getting into anyones hands."

"Where do you think they'd keep his hand written file, then?" I asked curiously, placing a finger to my lips. Bruce sent me a wary look, and Tony raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose they'd keep it in Fury's room-"

"Thanks Bruce!" I turned on my heel, quickly heading towards the door and ignoring the confused expressions I was receiving from both males. They turned towards each other, shrugging and shaking off my behavior before turning back towards their respective experiments.

I made my way down the hall towards Fury's room; I knew it was the room farthest from everyone else's. I was so anxious, my mind reeling with ideas, that I wasn't focusing on what was in front of me. Before I knew it, I had tumbled onto the ground and onto the person who had been unlucky enough to be in front of me.

"Are you alright?" Steve sat up, pulling me up without a thought. He was certainly stronger than I had first imagined.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Steve."

"It's alright. Have you been okay? Since you've come back, you seem to be a lot more frantic."

"I'm fine, Steve." He frowned, shaking his head. I grew nervous under his stare, knowing that what I was doing was something he wouldn't approve of. I had known him long enough to know he was an honorable man; he didn't like doing things behind the back of Fury. In my opinion he had far too much trust in that man, but it was a trait that made him endearing. Perhaps if I had more time to explain this situation to him, he would understand my secretive behavior, but for now I couldn't trust anybody.

"I don't believe you."

"Look, I promise we'll talk later in the training room or something alright? I'll be down there tonight to get some boxing in, but right now there's something I have to do." He refused to let me push past him, instead grabbing my shoulders and holding me in place. His touch wasn't rough, gentler than that of Thor who had patted my shoulder once in recognition. I had been sore for nearly a week after that.

Steve's eyes scanned mine, looking for something that would give away what I was up to. I remained expressionless, holding his gaze. He finally shook his head, dropping his arms down to his side.

"8 o'clock, alright? Don't be late."

"You got it, Captain." He smiled a bit, patting my shoulder as he let me pass him by. I felt his eyes linger a few seconds longer on my retreating form before he went on his merry way. I sighed, not liking the feeling of lying to him. I didn't like lying to anybody, but this was something I wanted to do on my own. This was something I needed to get done now, before all evidence was destroyed.

The rest of the way there was uneventful; it seemed that everyone had headed down to the kitchen for dinner. I knocked on the door to Fury's room hesitantly, waiting to hear his voice growl for me to come in. When I heard nothing, I jiggled the knob and found the door locked. I patted my hair, pulling out the bobby pin that was tangled in there and crouching down. I glanced around, watching for any passerby's before sticking the bobby pin in.

As a child, my father would often punish me for stupid reasons. Most of the time it would be for talking back. So he figured he would teach me a lesson by locking up my toys and books in his computer room before he left for work for the day. I had learned this little trick from my mother, who had often agreed that I had done nothing to deserve punishment. She said she would deny all knowledge of teaching me this trick if I had ever gotten caught, but that had never been a problem. I could have been a wonderful thief if I had it in me.

"Gotcha!" The door clicked open. I slipped inside, still crouched down as I quietly closed the door behind me. I crawled across the floor, circling around Fury's desk and heading towards the cabinets. It was no surprise they were on lockdown, either. After opening them, I searched through the files, finding my father's before placing it on Fury's desk. I stood up, quickly crossing the room and locking the door once more before sitting down at Fury's desk.

Most of the file was pictures of him working, with vials in hand and him buried in papers. I had never known that my father had previously worked with S.H.I.E.L.D. The file had said he had been fired for doing experiments behind Fury's back, which had gotten him on his bad side. The last page in the file was a picture of two babies, attached to a long lab report.

Written in the chicken scratch I knew as my dad's handwriting, it read _'To duplicate the results of what is now Captain America, we are creating a new serum that shall turn the human into a superhuman to be used in Fury's army. Two young baby girls are being used, for it is in my belief that it must start at a young age. The only test subject to be allowed was my own daughter, and a close friend of mine's newborn baby girl.' _

I stopped reading after that, grabbing the picture of the two babies and staring at it closely. I glanced at the back, seeing my name written beside another name labeled 'Elizabeth Hurley'. I frowned, dropping the picture and rubbing my temples. This was enough new information to last me a lifetime, I felt a growing pit of sadness growing in my stomach.

To think I'd been living with a man who tested unknown substances on children was disgusting. I let out a soft sigh; I had known when I had come here that I'd find things I didn't want to. I stood up with the file, placing it back in his rightful place. I was about to leave when I noticed a frayed paper on the ground. I leaned down, picking it up and scanning it. It was another lab report of my father; however the test subject this time around had been…

My mother.


	9. Chapter 9

As I tore open her case file, the door knob jiggled violently.

"Damn." I heard Fury growl from outside the room. "I forget where the damn key is for this door." I heard his footsteps fade, and went into panic mode. I folded the lab report to read later, and slipped it down my suit. The skintight thing I was wearing made it pretty difficult, but hopefully I wouldn't run into anybody on the way to my room. I carefully slipped out, being sure to lock it before slipping quickly down the hallway. At the junction that led to all of our rooms, I passed by a muttering Fury, who was on his way back to his office.

I slipped into my room, locking the door behind me and letting out a sigh of relief. I tossed the file onto my bed, quickly shifting over to the small bathroom that was attached to my room. I looked in the mirror, noting my tired face. I realized this is what my mother and Steve must've been talking about; I looked a lot worse than I had thought. I just need a goodnight's sleep, right?

Knocking on my door made me jump. I grabbed the file, neatly stuffing it into my pillow case. I pulled myself together, straightening out my attire before unlocking the door.

Steve stood there with a raised eyebrow.

"You lock your door now?" He asked curiously.

"Oh, no, I was just about to get changed and go down to the gym." He eyed my suspiciously, but nodded.

"I was going to walk you down there."

"Oh, alright! Let me change real quick and we can go." I smiled weakly at him, closing the door before he could say anything else. It made me blush to think that I'd almost forgotten about meeting with him; but it made my heart flutter to realize he'd come up to make sure I'd be coming. Did he really want to talk to me that bad?

Don't be an idiot! He was one of the nicest people I'd ever met; of course he'd be chivalrous like this. It was just in his nature to be kind and caring to all as long as their name wasn't Tony Stark. To think that I would be special in any sort of way… I was acting like a lovesick fangirl. I couldn't help it though.

The strong attraction I had towards him was something that was near impossible to ignore. I had the same amount of attraction towards Tony, he was a very good-looking man, but what threw off the strength in that case was his personality. Steve was everything I admired in a person; he was kind, temperate, and caring. He did things for the good of others; he placed others before himself. If it came down to it, I'm sure he'd sacrifice his life for Tony.

At first I had only known him as the iconic figure of World War II, the brave warrior that stood for the good of the people. Even I had a hard time believing that his good nature wasn't just for show, but I've been given the opportunity to explore his personality and I've realized it's true. The man is naturally… _good_.

And how many men can you really say that for?

I slipped into the sweatpants and white t-shirt, throwing my hair up before exiting the room. I normally wouldn't dress so casual around a guy I… admired. But Steve was different to me. It was comfortable to be around him, because it felt like I wouldn't be judged. I felt worse about not telling him what I was up to earlier, realizing he would've given me a chance to justify myself had I explained to him.

"You okay?" Steve's face lit up as I exited the room. I smiled back at him.

"I'm fine. Let's get to training."

I was ready to beat the frustration from love and secrets out on a poor punching bag. I was doing a good job of hiding any of my feelings, I never had been, and I could see Steve was trying to piece together what was bothering me. It'd be impossible for him to figure out unless he'd been secretly stalking me… Or talking to Agent Coulson.

Oh god.

"How did your trip to visit your mother go?" Steve asked randomly. I missed the punching bag as he asked me, losing my concentration and slipping forward. The man was fast, I had to give him that. He had caught me by the elbow, preventing me from having an embarrassing crash and keeping me standing. I blushed at the contact, pulling away quickly and trying to hide the anxiety that was slowly creeping up on me.

"It went as well as I thought it would." I went back to the punching bag that he was standing next to now, watching my every move. I kept myself focused this time, blocking out the sounds around me as I pushed myself harder and harder. As I was about to land a finishing punch on the bag, Steve's hand caught my fist and stopped it single handedly. I looked up at him curious, looking away from his intense stare.

"Something's wrong." He stated. "Tell me."

"It's nothing, Steve." I felt his hands on my shoulders, forcing me to face him.

"Why don't you trust me?" I could feel the tears welling up, the heavy feeling on my heart returning as I realized what a horrible reality I had been forced into. If my dad had just been a normal person, if my mom hadn't let me leave, if I was never forced to have these stupid powers, I'd be okay. I'd be at home, another normal person, and I'd know how to deal with my problems. I wouldn't be forced to come up with new ideas and have to think of new possibilities for my future. I wouldn't have to suffer through all this complete and utter bullshit!

I could be in the dark like the rest of the human race. I could be safe and sound in my home, going to school…

"What kind of idiot wants to be abnormal?" I stuttered out , immediately regretting my action. If I had kept quiet perhaps the tears wouldn't have come so easily. Steve stared at me, shocked for a moment. "Who would ask for this life? I want a normal one, I want a normal mom and dad who chastise me for coming home after dark and who hate the boyfriend I'm with but respect my decisions. I want a predictable, boring life where I know I'll die at a ripe old age. I want a life with no secrets, with no lies and deceit; I want to be normal."

The events afterward moved to fast for me to think; one minute I was standing alone, crying, and the next I was in the arms of iconic hero Captain America. His arms flexed as he pulled me closer, his hands resting firmly on my back. I felt more than embarrassed than before, wishing that I didn't feel as pathetic as I did. My body betrayed my mind, who said to be strong and to wipe away the tears; instead I leaned into his arms and enjoyed the new feeling of warmth.

"We should stop for the night…"Steve suggested. I shivered at feeling his warm breath on my ear; I had never been close to a guy before. I nodded, pushing away from him and avoiding his eyes. On the way back to our rooms, I could see the constant glances he sent my way. I wanted to drag him along with me for comfort after I read the dreadful file that was still waiting for me back in my room.

"You!" Fury's voice boomed through the hallway. "You stole one of my files!" Oh damn. Damn, damn, damn! How did he find out? Did I leave behind a hair follicle or something? Fury began to walk towards me, killing intent in his eyes before Steve held his arm out in front of me and blocked Fury's path.

"She wouldn't do that." I wanted to tell him he was wrong to defend, for I had taken one of the files, but his faith in me…

"Is that so? Then why is the file pertaining to her missing? Along with Elizabeth Hurley's?"

"I don't have those files!" I exclaimed. "Why would I want my own file and one of some girl I don't know?" Fury glared hard at me; it was obvious the trust issues between the two of us were never going to be solved. Not at this rate. He let out another threatening growl, turning to head back towards his office before stopping abruptly.

"Let me find out you were in my office, girl, and you may not live to see tomorrow." I inhaled sharply, looking down.

What he had said was not an empty threat.


	10. Chapter 10

"A ball?" Tony raised an eyebrow, amused at the suggestion. "I've been to a few, all in honor of me, of course."

"This one will be different. Do not take this as a day off." Fury slammed his hands against the table to further grab our attention. "This is a ploy to lead Loki out into the open; we need him to attack us directly so we can see what he's up to. Putting all of you in one area seems to be the most logical thing to do to draw his attention."

"How is that logical…?" I muttered under my breath. I had been on thin ice with Fury since the missing files incident, and my mutter did not go unheard. He whipped his head towards me, which was enough to make me shirk back towards the good Captain sitting beside me. Tony chuckled, having more knowledge on the situation than Steve did. I couldn't tell what it was, but it felt as though there was a rising tension between Tony and Steve; more so than usual.

"So, when is this ball?" Natasha raised a hand to draw the attention to her. "I'm going to assume you've prepared everything for us beforehand?"

"We have. Your attire is now situated in your room." I twitched at the thought of someone invading my personal space without my permission, immediately worrying about the file still stuck within my pillow. After that night I had absolutely no time to read any of it. I was constantly interrupted, and then I was thrown out on a mission with Tony once more. "The Ball is tonight."

"Well damn." Tony commented with a smirk. "Doesn't give me much time to get a date. Hey, you wouldn't mind going with me would you? Of course you wouldn't." Tony winked in my direction, causing me to avert my gaze from him with a blush. He was attractive after all, and the fact he was shamelessly flirting with me in front of all of these people caused me to become nervous.

Not even I missed the look Steve sent towards Tony.

We were dismissed, each of us filing towards our room where our attire awaited. Fury had given us just enough time to be ready before we would be dropped off. This whole idea seemed to be a desperate attempt to pull Loki from hiding. It left us open to attack, Steve still had his strength but without his shield he was unprotected and in extreme danger if guns were present. Tony wouldn't be too useful with his Iron Man suit, and in such a crowded area, Bruce could do far too much damage to the area around us. Natasha and Hawkeye were the only ones that could still be useful. I guess I didn't need a suit to fuel my power, but I could be just as destructive as the rest of them.

What exactly was Fury thinking?

He was putting us out in the open, where we wouldn't be prepared. I had figured him as a man who would have more planning for that…

The dress was loose on the upper part of my body and tighter when it reached my hips. It was dark blue, with a silver flower design around the waist that led up to my shoulder. The dress had to be zipped in the back, which I found difficulty doing on my own. There were two pairs of heels waiting for me to choose between, and I found humor in the thought of Fury going shopping for these items. How confusing would it be to see a big, scary man with an eye patch observing heels and trying to choose between them?

Natasha opened the door to your room quickly, causing you to squeak in surprise and cover yourself.

"Don't worry, I'm not one of the boys." She smiled. "I came to see if you needed help zipping up."

"O-Oh. Yeah, I do." She nodded and walked over, easily zipping up the back of my dress.

Hers was black, tight and slimming, much like her normal outfit. She was the kind of woman who didn't need make-up to look beautiful; she always looked stunning. After she finished zipping up the back of my dress, she stood with her arms crossed as I continued to fix my hair.

"How did you get weaseled into joining the Avengers?" I asked. Natasha remained with her arms crossed, watching me closely.

"I have a debt to pay off." She replied shortly. Something told me she hadn't come into my room for casual conversation.

"Ah…" I strapped on the heels, tugging to make it fit around my ankle correctly before taking a few experimental steps. When I didn't fall on my face, I looked back up at Natasha. "And is there any reason behind you deciding to visit me?" She smirked, in what I thought was approval.

"Fury told me to keep an eye on you, and even though I don't feel like there's a real reason to, I'd rather not strike the man's bad side."

"You say that like anything actually happens." It figures Fury would have everything to do with this. I subconsciously glanced over at my pillow, which was the wrong move on my part. Natasha followed my eyes.

"Something wrong?" She asked smoothly. I watched nervously as she stepped closer to my bed, before she sat on it completely. She crossed her legs, placing her hands on her lap. She watched me walk around the room, testing out the heels again before I turned to her.

"Well, I'm ready how about you?"

"You got a diary or something under this pillow?" She asked casually, her hand gliding across the surface. I shook my head, a bit more rapidly than I should have. I forgot I was dealing with a top notch spy who's set of skills involved interrogation; from what I heard, she always got the information she needed.

"It's not a diary, but it is personal information. Now, I'm done getting dressed so should we meet the guys?" She looked over at the pillow again, scrutinizing it for any detail she could report back to Fury later before she stood up.

"Sure." She replied coolly, leading the way outside. The guys had gathered in front of Fury, who seemed to be chastising Tony again. All of them had a suit that reflected their personalities, it seemed. Poor Thor looked as though his needed to be a few sizes bigger, but he was smiling none the less.

Steve stood towards the back, looking clean cut as usual. His dark blue suit really complimented him; I nearly laughed openly when I realized that his tie had white stars all over it. It looks like he'd never get away from the Captain America image, would he?

Tony was dressed in his classic black suit with a red tie; he did look stunning in it.

Bruce had on a rumpled gray suit that seemed to fit him; I thought he looked handsome and even more intelligent than normal in it.

Thor was dressed in an odd white suit, something that made him look quite out of place among the group. I could clearly see with every movement that the seams of his jacket wanted to rip.

Hawkeye had no tuxedo jacket to accompany his attire, simply a gray vest to put over his white dress shirt. His sleeves were already rolled up, showing of the muscles in his arms.

The attention was drawn to us when Fury looked up. I had figured the guys were used to seeing Natasha in sleek, sexy attire but I was entirely different. I blushed at the attention of the Bruce and Steve, who were both looking at me with their mouths agape. Steve smiled as I approached and stood beside him.

"You look- I mean you're-"

"Beautiful." Bruce finished Steve's sentence for him, turning to look at me with a kind smile. "I think Captain is trying to say you look very nice tonight."

"Well, thank you, Steve." I smiled at the tongue-tied Captain who simply blushed and turned his attention back to Fury. Although he was dictating rules, I couldn't help but feel like this night was needed by all of us. Even though we were to be aware of our surroundings, it was a well needed break where we could socialize with other people and be free from this flying metal death trap. I, for one, was looking forward to having some breathing space and not running into Tony around every corner.

I had a good feeling about tonight; maybe Loki wouldn't turn up and we'd have to refer to another plan.

I could only hope.


	11. Chapter 11

The party was beautiful, as I had expected it to be. The sea of people that stood before all of us were nearly endless; I was beginning to grow anxious as we were lead by Fury through the crowd. I stuck next to Bruce and Natasha, distancing myself from Tony as we entered. I tugged down the long, elegant navy blue dress that Fury had somehow managed to force me into; it seems that the blackmail would never end. Everyone clapped as we entered, cheering for us and chanting certain names of their favorite Avenger.

Good to see so many loyal fans here tonight.

We all separated, Tony shooting straight for the bar while the others went off to chat with possible friends and observe the ballroom. Loki could show up at any moment, and we had to be prepared when he did so that no one else got hurt in the long run. I stood alone on the edge of the dance floor, lips pursed as I observed the boring party around me. The people were doing the same boring slow dance; someone should try and spice things up around here!

I saw a girl across from me, her eyes focused on the couples. A frown was on her face as she watched the others; a certain longing was in her eyes. I smiled, travelling along the edge of the dance floor before approaching her. She looked up at me innocently, her eyes widening once she realized who I was.

"Would you like to dance?" I gave her a warm smile, hoping she would accept my offer. She looked me up and down for a second, her eyes scanning my face to see if I'd laugh and walk away from her.

"Girls don't usually dance together…" The girl averted her eyes from mine. "Isn't it weird?"

"Who cares?" I reached forward and grabbed her hand; she squeezed it back as I led her onto the dance floor. I could feel all the eyes in the room on me; the other couples migrated away from us so it seemed that we were the center of attention. Luckily, a faster paced song began to play as the attention spread to us. I grabbed onto the thing material of my dress, tearing it so that my legs were free to move. I tossed my shoes off with the ripped pieces of dress. Everyone around me gasped, especially as I tossed the dress into the crowd and grabbed the girls' hand.

We began to dance wildly across the room, my hand on her waist and holding up her other hand as we maneuvered across the dance floor. She was laughing, and I found myself laughing with her. A light feeling began to fill my heart as we continued to dance wildly; random cheers from the crowd could be heard. I glanced up, noting that most of the other Avengers had worked their way to the front of the crowd and were watching with mild amusement.

When the song ended, I released the girl, who by now had a wide smile on her face. I smiled as she flushed again, excusing herself and leaving the spotlight. I made my way back over to my group, who were all looking at me as though I'd grown a few heads. Tony was the only one who didn't seem to find what I had done amusing; he choked down another swig of alcohol before sending me a haughty smirk.

"You know, you're a lot prettier when you smile; dazzling, even." He commented off handedly. I felt my cheeks heat up, glaring at him before turning my back towards the rest of them. Fury was approaching me at an astonishing speed, and a smile made its way to my face when I realized how annoyed he looked. It couldn't mean good news for me, but it was good news for him, either. So I'd take that as a win-win situation.

"You're supposed to lay low and watch for Loki, not dance and make a fool of yourself!"

"Yeah, because Loki couldn't possibly figure out we're at a party called 'The Avengers Party' or anything, right?"

"You do anything you can to rebel, don't you?" He spat out, glaring hard at me with his one eye. I rolled my eyes, picking up the discarded pieces of dress that I had torn off and throwing it at him.

"That's what I think of your dress, and this stupid party."

"If she were you, she would've gone green a long time ago." Tony jokingly elbowed Banner, who managed a weak smile.

I brushed past Fury, finding myself lost in the crowd of people. I heard him call my name a few times, but I kept my head down low and my mouth shut. If I wanted to disappear, I was going to disappear, and there was nothing he could do about it but wait until I wanted to talk to him. This would be never if I was going to have my own way, but in my mother's case, I couldn't afford to completely piss him off.

After I was sure the coast was clear, I straightened myself out and strode over to the tall windows. I stared out into the night sky, sighing as I rested my head against the window. I wished I had gotten my shoes now; the rug was rubbing against my feet and causing an odd sensation. I didn't like not being able to feel the earth beneath my feet; it irritated me to feel vulnerable and without my powers.

The clicking of heels brought my attention back to reality; I glanced to the side to see a tall, long haired blonde walking out of the party. Her eyes immediately found mine; they were dark and intimidating. She sent an eerie smile my way, breezing past me as she stepped out of the balcony doors. She closed them with a click behind her, but not before she looked up at me and winked.

What was that all about?

The next intruder on my private time was none other than the Iron Man, Tony Stark. He walked out with the top buttons of his dress shirt undone, his sleeves pulled back, and a glass of alcohol in his hand. He had a smirk on his face; what else was new?

"Scotch." He held the glass towards me. "Want some?"

"I'm not old enough to drink!" I pushed his hand away. "Plus, I would drink regardless. I don't like anything that impairs my judgment."

"C'mon kid, I won't tell anyone. It'll make Fury more bearable." I took a second look at the drink, taking it and observing the liquid closely. There wasn't too much left in the tiny glass, so I wouldn't get intoxicated. At least, I don't think that's how it works. I looked at it suspiciously for a few seconds before taking a deep breath and knocking back the alcohol. Tony looked at me with wide eyes. "Well okay Charlie 40 hands, I believe you've never had a drink before."

"Shut up, I haven't." The drink tasted like something burnt and disgusting; looks like I'd learn my lesson. "I hate you."

"No you don't." Tony replied haughtily. "In fact, you find me attractive. You love me. Admit it."

"I will do no such thing." I scrunched up my face in faux disgust. "You're a terrible, terrible man Tony Stark."

"I bet I can change your mind by the end of the night."

"I think I'll pass on the offer, thanks." He chuckled.

"All women give in eventually to my charm. Only a matter of time before you do." Tony fixed his tie. "And do you want to know why I'll win this argument?"

"Do tell."

"Because I'm Iron Man." I couldn't stifle my laughter.

"Sorry, Tony, but I've got to say Iron Man isn't exactly my kind of hero."

"Oh, and who is?" His eyes narrowed, and he pretended to gasp and put on a surprised face. "Would your taste happen to lie in star spangled suits and the technologically challenged?"

"Your scotch glass is empty; I think you should go get it refilled." He looked at the glass, pretending to be surprised again.

"I understand, you've got to think over my offer again. I'll be back by the end of the night, oh, and just in case we don't get to talk again, you know where my room is." He winked at me before leaving me to be alone with my thoughts. The clicking of the balcony door drew my attention; the blonde haired beauty smiled as she passed me by, re-entering the party. I followed her this time around, suspicious of her motive.

She seemed to catch on to the fact I was following her; she smoothly disappeared into the crowd and I could no longer find her. I sighed in frustration, curious about whom this odd woman was but figured my search for now would be futile. I turned towards the bar, where Steve was standing with Tony and a pretty red haired girl. I could already smell trouble brewing from here. I walked over, looking at Steve curiously; he rolled his eyes and shook his head.

It looks like Tony was being himself again.

"Well." The girl smiled flirtatiously as she looked at Tony, perking out her breasts. I rolled my eyes; Steve seemed to understand my reaction. "I have something to admit though... I kind of have a boyfriend, but you're like, really attractive."

"Ah, yes, happens to the best of us." Tony shook his head. "I could've shown you my tower; however, you should probably head home to your boyfriend tonight instead."

"Well, it doesn't count if I don't want it to, right?"

"Excuse me?" The conversation was causing me to lose brain cells, and I couldn't keep quiet any longer. "What was that?"

"If I have a boyfriend and I kiss another guy, is it really considered cheating if he doesn't know about it?"

"If I punch you in the face with my left fist but I'm right handed, does it still count as me punching you in the face even though nobody saw?"

"What?" The red head scratched her head while Steve pulled me away, chuckling softly as he led me to a less populated part of the dining room.

"I can't stand people!" I exclaimed as soon as we were out of earshot. "How can anyone cheat on someone who loves them and would do anything for them? Isn't breaking up easier? And Tony! Doesn't he realize we're on a damn mission right now, to look for Loki in this party? Not flirt with some moronic redhead that doesn't know her left foot from her right hand?"

"Calm down." Steve sighed. "I can understand your frustration, but as long as we're here, we'll get it handled. Don't worry about Tony; you'll only stress yourself out." He forced a smile, placing his hand on my shoulder. "Let's survey the guests again, alright?" I did what he suggested and pushed Tony to the back of my mind; it did wonders for my building migraine.

"Wanna dance with me, Cap?" I smiled playfully up at him, catching him offguard.

"You wouldn't wanna dance with me." He looked away shyly. "I'd step all over you."

"Limber on the battlefield but not on the dance floor?" I teased, prodding his arm.

"Not just that…" He looked towards his feet, a frown placing itself on his face. "I have… bad memories with dancing."

"Then let's make good memories to replace the bad." I grabbed his hand, tugging the hero along with me into the middle of the dance floor. He looked skeptical at first, but as I wrapped my arms around his neck and placed his hands on my waist, he relaxed.

Something slow began to play, and once we stepped into rhythm, Steve seemed to be doing well. I kept a close eye on my feet, moving them whenever Steve stepped a bit too close to them. He apologized under his breath; he was concentrating pretty hard to keep his steps in line for me.

It felt nice to be this close to him, to feel his hands on my waist and his chest pressed against mine. I felt like Tony, thinking off all of these romantically odd things; a few months before I wouldn't have felt like this if Steve had touched me. Everything seemed to feel a bit different now, though, and being this close to him had a relaxing vibe to it. As long as he worked on his footwork, he could be a fantastic dancing partner.

He would be a fantastic partner in general.

A loud boom shook the room; our moment was over and panic began to ensue. People scattered around the room, finding loved ones and attempting to figure out what was going on. Steve tensed up, scanning the room for Loki or any other intruders. We spotted Natasha who was waving us over to the group; Steve grabbed my hand and together we pushed through the crowd to approach the group. Fury stood in the middle of us, his eyes looking over each of us.

He didn't have to use words to get his point across.

Loki had arrived, and it was time to get serious.


	12. Chapter 12

We were given the task of keeping the guests safe, which involved evacuating them without letting Loki get to them. Tony left to find the secret compartment within the building that held an Iron Man suit, which he had created only hours before the party. Steve followed to retrieve his shield; Natasha was fully prepared, as was Hawkeye who pulled out his bow and slung his arrows over his back without any trouble. Bruce had already left to search the building for any guests that had wandered off away from the entrance; I think he was nervous about turning into Hulk in such a crowded area.

I spotted her from where I was standing; the blonde girl that had been watching me.

"I'll be back." Before Fury could question my motives or protest, I was running across the ballroom floor towards the area where the girl had been previously standing. She ran as soon as she saw me look in her direction; I barely managed to keep up with her. She led me along the empty hallways, to the fire escape that led up to the roof. I followed her without a word; she would be cornered on the roof now.

The fire escape slammed closed behind me.

"I'm glad to finally meet you." The blonde haired girl turned around, a smile on her face. "Loki's been speaking about you for a long time. I think it's time to see where your skills lie." Fire shot from her fist before I could get a word in; I rolled to the side, stopping myself before I slid off the roof. I'd have to watch my step around here or I'd be facing a lot of broken bones. I deflected the fire, shooting back flames of my own that she barely avoided.

"Who are you?" I shouted.

"I'm Brianna Hurley." She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not surprised you don't know of me. I was kept a secret. While you got to go back home to your family, I was forced to stay in a lab. Do you know what it's like to have tests run on you every single day of your life? Did you ever imagine growing _used_ to the prick of needles in your skin as your blood was taken for more and more tests every day? No, I don't think you do."

"You're the other girl from the experiments?"

"That's me." She replied coolly. "And I'd like to talk with you about your ever so perfect life, but my job is done." She ran to the side of the building, sliding down the gutter before completely breaking it off. The water that had been inside of it began to over flow; I watched as she raised the water into the air, creating sharpened points of ice. "Watch what you can truly do with your powers, if you were on the right side."

She turned to the water tower that was looming over the ballroom, shifting the shards of water forward. It easily sliced through the metal. The damage she had done showed its consequences in mere seconds; the water tower began to slowly shift over.

I had to think quickly or else be crushed along with all the people still filing out. Having innocent deaths on my hands was not an option. Her lips curled into a smile as she waved goodbye, before she slipped into the crowd of panicking people. I didn't even have enough time to contact one of the others to warn them; I had a complete catastrophe to handle.

I felt my heart began to race faster. The water tower made a loud screeching sound as its angle changed. I held out my hands, closing my eyes to concentrate more on the feeling of the water swishing around inside the water tower. I used the force of the water inside, along with a few solid pieces of earth at the bottom to keep the water tower from puncturing over the building and completely destroying it.

It took a lot of my energy to focus on two different areas; it took even more to push such a large amount of water to the opposite side of the tower to keep it from tipping over more. If I let go for even a split second, total destruction would ensue. I had to hold it up as long as I could while the rest of them were evacuating the citizens inside and fighting face to face with anything else Loki had let loose. This was no easy task, especially not as I felt my muscles tense in my arms. It was putting a great strain on me; mentally and physically.

If I hadn't gone through such extensive training with Steve, my muscles would've given almost immediately. I'd have to thank him later for doing me a favor like this. If I managed to survive this encounter; I could think of a way for me to be able to get away before the tower crashed down. It wasn't my first priority nor was it the thing I was most worried about, so I pushed it to the back of my mind. I had to concentrate on buying them time for their own escape rather than worrying about myself.

It hurt badly; I felt as though my muscles were ready to pull apart after about ten minutes of holding this position. I was scared more than anything; if I moved, I may lose concentration and even if it happened for just a split second, I would never be able to recover the balance I have currently. I would doom too many people to death. To ignore pain was a feat I still hadn't mastered but it never crossed my mind to make myself more comfortable.

I heard footsteps behind me, running towards me at an animal like pace. I felt a claw caress the back of my leg, another one grabbing onto my thigh. I squeezed my eyes shut tighter, ignoring the feeling of pain as my leg was stabbed. I willed myself silently to keep my thoughts on the flow of the water, and the position of the earth below, but I didn't know how much longer I had before I was completely slaughtered by the creature.

A bright flash of light blasted by me; I could feel the heat from the blast slightly burn the back of my leg. I wobbled unsurely, losing control of the rocks below as the tilting water tower broke them into pieces. Before I could try to resume my position, I was stopped once more.

"Let's go, mother nature." I turned to the side quickly, only to be swooped up into Iron Man's arms. I watched in disdain as the tower fell over, crashing loudly as it hit the stone of the building. The metal of the tower split open, causing the surplus of the water to spill out onto the street below before it completely flooded the building. The area was mostly deserted by now, some cars barely making it away before the water washed over them. The majority of the people seemed to have disappeared from the scene; I had held it up long enough to keep others safe.

I was panting heavily, feeling cramps start up in my arms. It definitely felt as though I'd pulled something putting that much effort into keeping the water in one place. I didn't think water was that heavy; but then again, I'd only ever controlled small doses of it. At least I was slowly beginning to figure out my limits. I couldn't think much about anything; my head felt as though someone were slamming a hammer against it at full speed. The cool night air did nothing to help this intense pain that took over my body.

Tony entered an open portion of the helicarrier, carefully helping me stand. Fury was waiting by the open area, shutting it after Tony and I had entered. Steve ran over, asking me if I was okay or something along those lines. I couldn't find the energy to focus on what exactly was going on around me. The world was spinning again, and I felt myself tip over slightly. The world seemed to be completely spinning.

"Whoa there." Tony grabbed onto me, preventing me from having an impromptu date with the floor. "Maybe I shouldn't have given you that drink."

"Maybe." I replied, giving him a weak smile. Steve stepped forward.

"I'll take her to the infirmary." Tony looked up at him.

"Of course, Captain, wouldn't want to step in on your leading lady." Steve ignored Tony's taunting tone, easily scooping me up into his arms and pushing past the others. On the way to the infirmary, Hawkeye was leaning against the wall, rubbing his temples in pain. He glanced up at me for a second, and I thought I saw a flash of blue that was a very unusual shade but it was gone before I knew it. I pushed it off; my eyes must have just been playing tricks on me.

I couldn't help but wonder what Brianna had said earlier; and I wanted to know how she ended up in Loki's hands. I closed my eyes, letting the fact that I could have easily died sink in. My head lolled against Steve's chest; he looked down at me with a frown.

More than ever I felt as if giving up would've been better than anything in the world. I wanted to go home. I wanted to be with my mom, I wanted to have normal family dinners, and a normal life. I wanted to be in college with tons of books to purchase and reports to be done. What had I done to deserve any of this stupid bullshit that's happening to me?

"I want to sleep forever. Wake me up in a 100 years." I muttered softly into his chest.

"Trust me." Steve smiled sadly. "It's not all it's cracked up to be."


	13. Intermission

In a dark dank place, far from any normal form of human contact, a blonde girl in a dress sat crouched down. She stared at the high-powered laptop in her hands, typing away furiously as another dark figure approached her. She sensed his presence and knew better than to ignore him, or else he may have one of his fits again. She turned, closing the laptop and standing up straight.

He looked over his soldier with a smirk of satisfaction.

"You are to meet me on the balcony, and you shall not be late or there will be consequences."

"You didn't answer any of my questions before… my liege." She also knew if she didn't note their obvious status difference that he'd be annoyed. He seemed pleased, now, however, so he must be having a good day. "How many people will be harmed?"

"Why does it matter? They're mere earthlings."

"I'm an earthling." She retorted. "And I only want revenge on one person."

"I employed you because of your skills and knowledge on the agents, however don't think that makes you irreplaceable." Loki shifted closer, gently stroking her cheek. She shied from his touch, turning away from his intense gaze and instantly regretting it. He roughly grabbed her chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "You will not turn away when I am speaking to you."

"Yes, my liege." She wanted nothing more than to pull out of his grip.

She would have thought this mission, the life she was leading now, would've made her happy. She was out of the lab, away from the prodding eyes and needles. There would be no more tests, no more unneeded pain. Not for herself or for another child they'd be testing that terrible formula on. She had been pleased when her escape with Loki had nearly leveled the whole place.

She knew plenty about him. Being in the lab had given her access to plenty of information hidden from the public eye. She had heard of Thor's first adventure on Earth, and after hearing of this, she began to delve into the world of Norse Mythology. Loki had been the most thrilling character to her; he was motivated by heartbreak, by a need for power… Yes, she could relate to him well.

She did not realize how dangerous his character truly was, now that she was under his control. She had at first been mind controlled like the rest of the agents Loki had taken from S.H.I.E.L.D. During the mind control, she could still see and understand the things happening; she just couldn't control what she'd do. Once she became more compliant with the way Loki ran things, he began to note that she was more of the obedient followers he had who didn't constantly fight against his wishes.

He gave her back her free will, allowing her to live as she wanted as long as she came to him when she was needed.

And that was why she was here today, to help him discourage the Avengers.

"I don't want to kill anyone but her, was my point." Loki released her chin. "I only want her father to feel the pain my father has, and this is the only way to do it."

"Corner her." Loki replied smoothly. "Draw her up to the roof, and do away with her. Her father will be devastated, the place will be in ruins, and we'll both have gotten what we desired."

"Won't people die if I go through with… your plan."

"I'm sure they'll escape, and if not, oh well." Loki turned, beginning to walk away when he stopped. "Do not fail me, Brianna." She let out an exhausted sigh.

"Of course not, my liege."


	14. Chapter 13

It had only taken a few days for me to recover from the extreme amount of exhaustion I had felt. I had to thank God for that, I didn't quite like sitting still for such long amounts of time. I think I had slept for nearly a day straight before I'd finally woken up for good; I think that might've frightened Steve a bit. He was one of my constant visitors though the time; it was sweet to see him so worried about me.

I don't know what it is, but I just get this feeling around him. A good feeling that I never want to leave; it warms my heart and makes me smile. Even though I've had so many different emotions running through me due to everything happening, whenever he was in the room there was one emotion I could point out.

Happiness.

And it was confusing me more and more. I used to be thrilled to be around him because he was my hero, and then he turned out to be my mentor. I knew I had a crush because, let's admit it, he's a handsome man with a heart of gold. The more my thoughts drifted to him, the more I felt this confusing onset of emotions. I didn't understand entirely what was going on with my feelings, if what I felt for Steve was just deep admiration or if it was…

One lonely morning after being lost in these thoughts, I wandered into the kitchen to get myself a cup of coffee. I was feeling particularly exhausted after a week of not understanding a thing that was going on in my head, and I wanted to see if caffeine could help clear it up.

Before I had figured out what I was doing, I realized I had two cups of coffee in front of me. I stared down at the second cup sadly, realizing it wasn't another Sunday morning at home. My mother wasn't here to chat with me over the news, or discuss my new confusing love life. It was just me, standing alone in the kitchen and looking like a girl who was about to overdose on caffeine.

I sighed softly as I heard someone else enter the kitchen; I was standing over to the sink about to pour the liquid down it when I felt a hand stop me. I looked up to meet the curious eyes of Steve, who took the second cup from my hands.

"You weren't going to waste this, were you?" He asked playfully. "I'll take it." I smiled at him, feeling my heart speed up and my cheeks turn pink.

"Oh, do I get the honor of sharing coffee with Captain America?" He simply smiled at me, taking a sip from the cup. I followed suit.

"Is there something wrong? You only drink coffee when something's troubling you." He had noticed that?

"I just… I miss my mom. A lot." I looked away, placing the cup on the counter. I could at least be honest with him about one of the problems on my mind. "I've been here awhile but I'm still not used to any of this. I guess it just goes to show you can't change a girl no matter what."

"Don't worry, as soon as this mission's over, you can go back home with your mom without any trouble." He walked over so that he was standing beside me, nudging me playfully. "You'll never have to see any of us again, well, not until the next monster comes along." I laughed along with him at his light-hearted joke, but realized the serious undertones of it. When he had suggested that I'd never see any of them again… Something changed in his eyes. For a split second they looked dark, clouded with worry and hurt. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but now they were the normal light blue.

"I don't think I'd want to go back…" I frowned. "I'm kind of worried about my mother. I mean, you don't think Loki would target her, do you?"

"I'm not sure." Steve shook his head.

"I need to get my mind off of things. Train with me?"

"Yes ma'am." Steve saluted me with a smile before motioning towards the door. "Ladies first."

After a few hours of going strong, the punching bag finally snapped off the chain. I felt rather proud of myself, having never been successful in knocking one completely off the chain. I like to think it was a show of my new found strength, when it was ultimately due to the fact Steve had used it before I had and hadn't changed it. But I'll boost my ego for now.

We took a short break, Steve changing the punching bag before plopping down beside me and leaning against the wall. There was a weird amount of tension in the air; the muscles in Steve's arms would tense every time I accidentally brushed up against him. Finally, I couldn't take the tension that was building up in the unwanted silence.

"Steve, are you alright?" I turned to face him. "You're really tense."

"I feel out of place." Steve admitted, looking down with a sheepish smile. "Everything around me has changed, while I've stayed the same. There are cell phones and computers that I have no idea how to use… I feel like I don't belong sometimes. Like I would've been better off frozen than in this new world."

"I feel the same sometimes…" He looked over at me curiously. "I mean, not an extreme case like yours. My whole life I'd been a normal girl with no powers; I never thought I'd be travelling around with a bunch of heroes. I don't feel like I belong here, because I'm not as great as any of you are. You're all amazing fighters and I'm just here."

"I think you're pretty amazing." I sighed but couldn't help the smile that fell onto my face. He just seemed to have a way of cheering me up when I was down; a rare thing to be able to do. I leaned against him; he shifted his shoulder so that I could rest on him more comfortably.

It felt natural, as if moments like these were only natural between the two of us.

Or perhaps that was just me over romanticizing reality again.

"You're a good guy, Cap'n. I think the world is a better place with you in it, and I dare say you're making progress with your technological problems." He laughed heartily, leaning down to rest his head on top of mine. "Did you really think that you were better off frozen?"

"Things were confusing at first." He stopped speaking for a moment, his face contorting into a confused expression. "I was frustrated from everything happening, and having no one to help me. But after I joined the Avengers I realized my purpose; to keep innocent civilians safe from crazy dictators who try to rule them. As long as I'm alive, I've promised myself that I'll do all that I can to protect people."

"I think that's a pretty good reason to exist."

Steve started to move, causing me to pull away and look up at him curiously. I flushed as I realized his eyes were focusing on me, before they shifted down to my lips. I gulped as he moved closer to me; I couldn't tell if he knew what he was doing or if he really wasn't paying any attention. But it wasn't like him to be distracted around me; I normally had his full attention.

With a deep breath he leaned forward, pressing his lips to mine.

The kiss had started off awkwardly; he had used a little too much force when he went in for the kiss, so my head bumped against the wall. He held onto my arm tightly, forcing my body to face him as he moved his lips against mine. His tooth scraped against my lip, and at one point I swear my hand ended up somewhere it shouldn't have been, but it was such a great relief of tension that neither one of us cared. This kiss had been so long overdue that neither of us wanted it to end.

He pulled away, pink and flustered.

"I'm sorry, I should've asked." He apologized as soon as he got his breath back.

"Calm down, soldier." I smiled shyly. "I didn't mind." I gripped the white t-shirt he was wearing and pulled him down again. This time our lips met with more enthusiasm, since we were both prepared this time. His hand rested on my neck, his thumb gently tracing along my jaw line. My grip on his shirt loosened and my hand remained on his chest, until he finally pulled away for air.

"Well." We jumped apart, turning to face the new intruder. "I didn't realize the training room was for getting down and dirty; not like that, anyway."

"Be quiet, Tony. Did you need something?" He shrugged his shoulders.

"A kiss from you would sure seem to fit my needs, but alas, that's not what I came here for. Fury wants to speak with you."

"Will he ever leave me alone?" Steve stood up first, offering his hand. I gladly took it, smiling at him while Tony made disgusted faces in the background.

"I'll come with you." Steve started to say, but Tony cut him off.

"I didn't realize after one kiss you'd want to be attached to her hip." He commented sarcastically. "Director Fury wants to speak to her alone. So alone she shall be. You'll have to do without your lovebird for a few minutes, Cap, but I think you can handle it." I elbowed Tony as I walked past him, smirking as he glared at me. Steve looked frustrated, as though he had something to say but he held it back, watching as I left.

Why was Fury calling me down now?

I could only worry about what it was I had done as I walked into to his office.


	15. Chapter 14

"Ah, welcome Agent-"

"Whatever it is you think I've done, I haven't." I replied before he could finish his sentence. Fury looked at me with a raised eyebrow before standing up from his desk.

"You're a fiery one, but I have an issue."

"And that would be?"

"My missing files." He smirked. "We've found their location, and the lab experiment who took them."

"You mean her? But how did she even get onboard?"

"That's a good question. However, that's not my biggest problem. Those files need to be retrieved, and immediately."

"So you want me to go in there?" Fury looked at me with fire in his eyes; I looked down.

"You'll be going with Hawkeye." The door opened and in walked the spy, fully equipped for the mission. "You'll go in, he'll watch your back, and the both of you will come back with my files. Understand?"

"Yes, sir." I muttered in defeat; I suppose a mission would be better than doing nothing for another week. Although spending that extra time with Steve was something that would alleviate all of the bad feelings I had been getting lately. Maybe it'd give me a chance to work on some reconnaissance skills.

I followed Hawkeye out of the room, when he took a turn down an abandoned hallway. I looked after him curiously, tilting my head as he stopped. He told me to follow once more in a rough tone, which I was about to fire a retort back to but I felt it would be out of place. Something wasn't right about Hawkeye; and I intended to find out.

"Stark!" Tony's head shot up as his experiment was irrevocably ruined by the Captain's intrusion. Bruce and Tony turned too.

"Where is she?" Steve asked warily, looking between Bruce and Tony. "Where did she go?"

"Mother nature, you mean?" Tony asked. "Left her with Fury, why? Did he really pulverize her this time?"

"This is no time to be joking, Stark." Steve glared at him. "She's gone missing, and there are two agents that were supposed to be guarding the aircrafts are knocked out cold. They said Hawkeye-"

"Hawkeye?" Tony smirked. "Jealous of her spending times with other men already, Captain?"

"Is there something you want to say, Stark?" Steve shot him a cold look, which Tony returned.

"Well since you brought up the subject, yes, I do have a few things to say." He crossed his arms and stepped forward. "What do you have to offer her, Captain? Do you even have a home to be able to take care of her in, or even a job other than being whatever you are now?"

"Are you… jealous?" Steve laughed. "Are you honestly jealous of the fact that she chose me over you?"

"She wouldn't have if you didn't completely coddle the girl; you're always around her and cutting her off from the rest of us."

"She asked _me_ to train with her Stark, she kissed _me_ back an-" Bruce walked into the middle of the room, holding back both men who were ready to tear out each other's throats. He looked at both of them in warning; they understood, and backed off. Tony went back over to his experiment, sitting down and reading over his notes while Steve turned to Bruce.

"What is it? What's happened with Hawkeye?" Steve shot one more disdainful look to Tony before turning back to Bruce, who looked as worried as he felt.

"They say he left with her. And that his eyes were glowing like… like when Hawkeye was under Loki's control."

"Uh, Hawkeye…" I continued to follow him to the aircraft, curiosity getting the best of me as he approached the Agents standing in front of the doorway, with his bow drawn. They both stood on edge, ready to fight back when Hawkeye easily knocked them out without a second thought. "What are you doing?"

Hawkeye turned on me, eyes glowing. He grabbed onto my arm roughly; I glared at tried to yank myself from his grip, which didn't work. His muscles flexed as he pushed me forward, wrapping his arm around my waist while keeping a hand over my mouth. Once we entered the aircraft he roughly pushed me to the back.

"Don't do anything funny." He growled, before turning away from me. I inhaled sharply, ready to retaliate when it hit me that he was still taking me to Brianna. This wasn't something that Hawkeye would do; he had to be under Loki's control again. I had read in his case file that he had at one point been under Loki's mind control, but I had thought it had worn off. It appeared he was once again suffering, although it did look as though he was fighting it off.

I was silent the whole ride; Brianna still had the case files, and I still had to get them back.

So I might as well stick this out and see what's going on, no matter how dangerous this plan is.


	16. Chapter 15

**Authors Note**: _To my lovely reviewer remarking on Cap's age; you do realize since he's been trapped in the ice, he hasn't technically aged? He's only about 21 in the story, even if he was born in 1918. He hasn't actually 'lived' a long life, so it's not that odd for him to take interest in an 18 year old. It's not like he's an old wrinkled man._

Once the aircraft had landed, I was forced to wear what smelt like a burlap sack of my head. Hawkeyes hands rested on my shoulders, his fingers digging into my skin as I was guided into a building. It wasn't working out as I thought it would; I couldn't see where I was to report back to anyone. Looks like I was about to 'lone ranger' this mission.

I was forced onto a chair, my arms being yanked back so that they could be tied with rope. As soon as the ropes were secured, the sack was torn from my head and tossed to the side. I had to blink to regain my sight, but when I did, the first person my eyes went to was Brianna. She smirked at me, crossing her arms as she looked over to Loki, who was standing beside her.

My eyes then shifted to the large pit in the center of the room, where a struggling human was. How could they trap another human being down there like that? He was covered in chains that led to a thick metal collar; in the pit a torn white lab coat was thrown to the side. Something felt familiar about this man; I squinted my eyes, until the lights in the room all redirected onto him. It was only when he turned to look at me that I realized who it was.

My father! It's my father!

"Brianna!" I cried out, turning to her with wide eyes. "What are you doing?"

"I kidnapped you so that you could watch your father suffer like I watched my father suffer!" She exclaimed, her eyes flaring angrily. My father pushed against the chains, avoiding looking over at me again at all costs. He flinched as Brianna sent an electric shock through the chains, causing him to lie still on the floor.

"Stop it! What does revenge get you?" I wanted to beg with her to leave him alone; any suffering that was to be done to him should be inflicted by me or my mother. Not by some crazy girl who has no idea what she's doing!

"Nothing." She replied calmly. "But it gives you pain. Do you remember this, Mr. Scientist? Do you remember the shock collar you put on me every day to make sure I behaved? Do you remember my father and how often he visited? Do you remember the fact that you stopped his visits because you knew he wanted to break me out of there? Do you know how much you've _ruined_ my life?"

My father glared at her; he never liked being talked back to, especially not by a child.

"Your father chose to not visit you, Hurley. Don't blame your father's dissipating love on me or my daughter!"

"Shut your mouth!" Another shock was sent his way; one that even made me cringe. I moved forward on the seat I was stuck to, crying out my father's name. From where he was lying on the floor, he stirred feebly, glancing up and meeting my eyes. He smiled weakly.

"I love you. I love you and your mother more than I've ever loved anyone. You both mean the world to me, and my foolish escapades for science have doomed both of you. For that, I am truly sorry." Brianna was glaring at him, but instead of pushing the button again she allowed to continue speaking. "Every day I try to come to terms with the fact I'm slowly killing your mother, and I never can. Sometimes I can't face her knowing I've hurt her, and you. I will accept death if it means that you will no longer be a target of this revenge-stricken girl."

"She won't." Brianna replied smoothly; Loki smirked from behind her, clenching the staff in his hand tightly. "Now suffer!" She held the button down, the shockwaves continuing to shoot through my father's body. I let out cries of pain as I watched him twitch, his skin became burnt and his cries more desperate. He was in so much pain and I could do nothing to stop it, I could do nothing but watch as he was tortured.

She let go of the button, breathing in deeply as she leaned over the railing to get a better view of my father's body. He was lying completely still; even if he was still breathing, his death was inevitable. She smiled slightly before her face fell again, and a confused look replaced it.

"My king…" Loki glanced over at her. "He's not breathing; you didn't say it would kill him…"

"Don't tell me you're having a change of heart." Loki's eyes glinted dangerously; Brianna gulped, looking away from him.

"Of course not. Tell me, what are we going to do with her now?"

"She'll make a good puppet." Loki replied, taking long strides until he was standing in front of me. His green eyes twinkled mischievously; he leaned closer, pressing the staff to my chest. "How do you think the good Captain will feel when he hast to obliterate his newfound love?" He pressed the tip of the staff to my chest. "Pathetic."

I inhaled sharply, gritting my teeth as an uncomfortable feeling began to pass over my body. It felt as though something was moving through my body, through my very bones, sinking in and wiring itself to my brain. I could feel my consciousness be pushed back; it felt as though a complete stranger was pushing me out and letting themselves in.

Clanging sounded from down the hall, which distracted Loki long enough for me to kick his staff away. I could already feel the effects of what I had done; the control Loki had tried to instill inside of me slowly weakened until it was completely gone. I let out a sigh of relief, resting back my head before I used my fire to destroy the ropes.

"You insolent little twit." He growled, raising his hand, ready to strike me.

A shield knocked Loki back; Brianna jumped up, ready to defend when she was rushed by two figures. Natasha easily restricted her movements, knocking her out cold in a matter of seconds. Steve rushed through the doors, Tony by his side. As Steve gathered back his shield, Tony shot another blast towards Loki, who easily deflected it. He stared at the Avengers with killing intent in his eyes, but he was aware that he was not prepared to fight.

Not just yet.

He disappeared before any of us could do a thing; Clint fell to the ground, grabbing his head as though he were in agony. Natasha made quick work of him, slamming his head against the ground before he could retaliate. I looked at her with wide eyes.

"It worked once, it'll work again." She replied smoothly, draping Hawkeye's arm over her shoulder.

Steve ran to me after gathering his shield.

"Are you okay?" He asked, looking me up and down for injuries. Fury stepped inside, followed by Maria, Coulson, and a few other unnamed agents. They easily picked up Brianna's body, tying her hands together for precaution before dragging her outside. Fury looked over the pit, a frown settled on his face as he placed his hands behind his back.

"I'm fine…" I whispered, glancing over towards the pit where my father lay.

"Let's head out, and someone be sure to hold her hand, because it seems she's always going to get into trouble." Fury glared at me, his tone laced with contempt. "You're more trouble than you're worth. I shouldn't have to set up security to watch over you, but it appears I have no other choice."

"Don't treat me like a child." I hissed, glaring hard at Fury. Natasha had disappeared with Clint into the awaiting Helicarrier, while Steve remained by my side as did Tony. Fury did not falter under my intense glare, instead stepping towards me and puffing out his chest.

"If you act as a child does, you will be treated as a child is. Get your act together, because if you don't, it may be more than just your father lying dead." I lunged forward, fist raised and ready to beat the living hell out of him. The way he could so casually refer to my father, as though he was never a human being in the first place… It infuriated me; it sent shock waves of rage flowing through my being.

Steve caught me by the arm, pulling me back into his chest as I struggled against him. Fury chose to walk away, not letting my reaction bother him as he ordered us to enter the Helicarrier immediately. He ordered the nameless agents to remove my father from the pit, and to bring him back to headquarters with us as I watched from the sidelines. After he had disappeared from view with the rest of the agents, all of my rage turned to sorrow. I stopped struggling against Steve and instead watched as the lifeless form that was my father was carried away.

One day came to my mind, I could remember a long time ago words that my father had said to me that stuck in my mind. I was only about five years old then, and I had been sitting in my room watching the night sky. The clouds had begun to roll in, and soon thunder was heard in the distance. I had been afraid of nearly everything at one point in my life, and thunder was the number one thing on my list of fears. A particularly loud strike unsettled me, causing me to scream.

"Dad, dad!" I had cried out. "Daddy please come save me!" He had rushed into the room, lab coat on. He had been in the middle of an experiment, but those were the days when he'd drop anything to make sure I was okay. I let out another squeal of unhappiness as another clap of thunder rang through the air. My father's arms wrapped around me, allowing me to rest my head on his shoulder as he cradled me.

"I'm here now, baby girl." He whispered softly as he held me. "I'm here. I'll always be here for you when you need me, so you don't have to be afraid. You never have to be afraid." He kissed my forehead softly, laying me down in bed and tucking me in again. "Goodnight, and remember, I'm right down the hall."

Subconsciously I felt my forehead where his lips had once touched, and realized I already missed the contact I knew would never happen again. I buried my face in my pillow, holding back the sobs and attempting to catch my breath. Things had begun to move so quickly, that I hadn't had one moment to myself. I needed a minute to breathe, to relax and see that it wasn't I who had died, but my father.

But he was no longer right down the hall from me, ready to answer my call for help; he was gone, never to protect me again.


	17. Chapter 16

"Well the fact you didn't manage to get killed was… impressive." Tony shrugged his shoulders as we walked down the hallway of the abandoned building.

"I guess you can't make fun of me anymore, huh?"

"Watch it Mother Nature; you'll mess up sometime soon and I'll have another thing to hang over your head until you want to kill me."

"I don't doubt that." I looked over at Steve to see a contemplative frown on his face. This made me frown in turn, wondering if I'd done anything to upset him. I was about to ask him when a few fearful Agents came running from the Helicarrier. Something was wrong.

I ran without a thought, Steve and Tony quickly following my lead. I looked around the Helicarrier to find it in complete dismay. Computers were smashed, papers were everywhere, and a very annoyed look Maria Hill was holding her arm and trying to regain control.

"What happened?" I asked curiously, eyeing everything around me.

"She's awake." She replied simply. "Go down and help her before Fury kills her." I nodded, but Steve was ahead of me. Tony stated something about checking on Bruce before disappearing, leaving me alone with the injured Maria. She let out an unhappy sigh at the burn wound. "You people are dangerous, you know." She walked away without another word, heading down towards the infirmary where she would probably bandage herself up.

Her words bothered me.

I realized I would never been seen as a normal girl by these people; not by Fury or any of the Agents. All they knew me as was a super human freak who could control the elements. I scared people; people were naturally intimidated by me because they thought I could burn them into a crisp before they could reach their guns. They thought I had it in my heart to actually kill when it wasn't true. That wasn't who I am, I shouldn't have to be defined by these powers I was forced to have. It wasn't my choice.

I didn't want to be scary; I didn't want people to hate me because of something I couldn't control.

I sighed, deciding I'd save the identity crisis until after Brianna was handled. I worried about Steve, hoping that Brianna didn't hurt him. The thought of her having a chance to touch him got under my skin; she wasn't going to take away two important men in my life. With that on my mind, I ran faster than I had before down the halls of the Helicarrier in an attempt to find her.

Her fists through the air easily; it was obvious how skilled she was. She had been trained in a lab her whole life where she'd done nothing but target practice and martial arts. Of course she'd be talented and strong; but they kept her limits low to the point she'd never be able to rebel without being beaten. Loki had shown her the light, he had shown her the strength she possesses and how strong she could be if she pushed herself.

And she would use that opportunity to show she wasn't weak.

Oh no, she wasn't weak.

Brianna easily ducked to avoid the shield thrown at her; her eyes narrowed as she spotted the Captain approaching her. Fury still had his gun trained on her; the old bastard would never let her live her life. He would bring her back to this hellhole over and over again. And she couldn't have that.

She'd rather be dead.

As Brianna was about to aim another blast towards the Captain, a certain anger rose up in my chest. You could even call it being 'protective'. The thought of her hurting him sent me into a rage I had felt hours before; maybe Tony's playful comment to Bruce about me going green was becoming true. All I knew was that she wasn't touching him, and that I would die if it meant he'd live.

I would die for my father, too, if I had had the chance to. Because no matter what he does, no matter how angry he makes me, he's still my father. He's still one of the most important people that I held close to my heart. I could never wish death on him, maybe a few punches to the face, but nothing like what he received for simply… doing his job.

I sent a blast of fire between Steve and Brianna, sending her cart-wheeling backwards. Steve looked at me with a shocked face, but didn't have time to react as I ran past him. Brianna glared at me, standing in a position and ready as I tackled her to ground. We rolled over the rubble, with me doing my best to aim well placed punches to her face while her hands burned my arms. I gritted my teeth through the pain, finally stopping as I was on top of her and she was staring at me from below.

She simply smiled.

"Are you going to kill me? Do you want revenge?"

"No." I stood up, offering her my hand. She gave me a look that made it clear that the only thought running through her head was if I was mentally handicapped or not. She stood on her own, once more getting into a fighting position. "Revenge will only create a big circle of hatred that'll never end; I'll stop it here." Before she could attack, I grabbed her hair, slamming her head hard against the wall and knocking her out cold again.

Fury and Steve looked at me with open mouths as I dragged her over to them, before looking at them in frustration.

"Going to help?" I growled as I tugged her along the floor, towards the large cell just waiting to make her acquaintance. Steve walked over, helping me carefully place her down into the cell before it was locked. I watched with a frown on my face as I realized she was back in captivity; she was back in the life she ran away from in the first place.

"Look at you." Tony commented as he stepped into the room, followed by Banner and Thor. "Taking lessons from a certain spy, are we?"

"I feel bad." I muttered. "She's trapped like a rat in a cage, which is the thing that turned her like this in the first place."

"You feel bad for a girl who just burned the skin from your arm?" Fury scoffed.

"I don't like you but I feel bad you lost your eye." I tauntingly stuck my tongue out at him before he whipped around. I'd rather him not catch me doing that, seeing as he'd probably rip my tongue at and celebrate the fact I'd never be able to speak again. Tony chuckled from behind me while Thor continued to look baffled.

"You humans are confusing." The attention turned to Thor, whose attention was focused on me. "You say these taunts with spite yet your eyes remain kind. You have compassion unlike any other."

"Thank you?" I smiled at Thor. "I try to be as empathetic as possible, so I guess that's a good thing." I turned back to look at Brianna, before shivering. The pain in my arms was beginning to hurt full force.

"You should get that checked out."

"I'll take her to the infirmary-"

"Don't worry Captain, I got this one." Tony grabbed the upper part of my arm, leaving me confused as he was pulling me away. Steve was about to argue with him when I turned to look at him and smiled.

"You shouldn't worry about me, Steve; get yourself checked out, okay? I'll be fine!" He smiled back at me weakly before I was escorted away by Tony. They'd been fighting more than usual lately; it was actually pretty irritating to listen to. I liked both of them but their arguments were caused by such petty things.

"You better watch it, Mother Nature, or Fury might actually start respecting you." Tony commented with a smirk. I laughed in response; the thought of Fury seeing me as anything but some annoying superhero he had to babysit was a ridiculous one.

"That'll be the day, Tony." I winced as my arm accidentally rubbed against his, since we were walking so close together. Tony frowned as he glanced down at my arms, before he looked up at the ceiling.

"So… You and Captain America, huh? Not many girls can say that." Tony commented with a shrug. "I mean, I saw it coming."

"Oh, did you?"

"The guy basically worships the ground you walk on. He never stops talking about you for one; he's like a lovesick puppy, actually." Tony sighed. "I guess if there's anyone that'll appreciate you, it'd be him."

"You look sad." I frowned. "Are you alright?"

"You know me, just women trouble." He shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing to worry your pretty little head about."

"Is it that one girl… you know, the one that works for you that you've liked for a long time? Pepper was her name, right?"

"Yeah…" He smirked, but his eyes shifted down and away mine. "It's Pepper."


	18. Chapter 17

I had been peacefully sleeping, which was difficult to do in the uncomfortable cots the infirmary had. It also wasn't easy due to the arm bandages I now donned, due to the fact if anything rubbed against them I'd be in intense pain. There were more worries in my mind, like the fact half the helicarrier was in ruins, Brianna was trapped down in the basement, and I had yet to get any answers concerning my mother's illness.

The absolute worst thing about being in the infirmary, however, was that the lab was right down the hallway. Tony and Steve had been arguing more often than usual, their fights starting over stupid things Tony said or clueless Steve having no idea what he's doing. They found any reason to fight, and it was beginning to get on my nerves.

They were acting like children more than heroes.

"Have you been drinking Stark?" I heard Steve's voice growl out from down the hall. I sighed after realizing sleep was not going to be an option any longer.

"No, I have not _been_ drinking." Tony replied shortly. "I still am." I let out an unhappy sigh as I stood up, carefully stretching as I went to stop their bickering. Bruce was sitting in between them, doing his research as usual while Tony took a sip from his drink. Steve continued to glare at him, and as he opened his mouth to push Tony's buttons again, I spoke up.

"Don't say anything, either of you." The attention was drawn over to me; I figured I looked beyond irritated, because for once Tony didn't have some smart ass retort to throw at me. Steve looked at me, annoyed, which is the first time I've ever seen him look at me like that before. In his hands was a manila folder, which he was clenching tightly.

"I need to talk to you." He looked me in the eyes, and gave me a look I'd never seen him give me before. He looked completely betrayed. I frowned as I followed him out, wondering what was on his mind. As soon as we were down the hall, he turned on me. He looked towards my feet, trying to think of what to say.

"Steve, what's wrong?"

"I thought you were different." He stated suddenly as he looked back up. "How could you lie to me about the folder?" He flashed me the folder; they were the case files on my mother that I'd left in my room. I stared at it with wide eyes, before looking back at Steve. I remembered how he defended me from Fury, and immediately felt guilty. I had meant to tell him and explain the situation, but I'd never gotten to it. Things had been happening at such a fast pace, the folder had completely slipped my mind.

"Look, Steve, let me explain-"

"I know you need time to mourn for your father but that didn't give you the excuse to lie to Fury or me; I'm starting to think he has a reason to distrust you." No one had brought up my father since it had happened, and I felt a heavy feeling of guilt settle over my heart. I looked at Steve with a stone cold glare, crossing my arms as the guilt was replaced with annoyance. How could he even bring up Fury right now?

"I don't have the time to mourn." I muttered in response to Steve, who looked surprised at the response. He began to frown, shaking his head and sighing. "What do you want me to say Steve!?"

"Nothing at all. If you'll excuse me." He replied softly, nodding his head before walking away without another word. I watched as he left, unable to think of anything to say. There was an urge to cry tugging at my heart, but I held back the tears and replaced it with frustration. It felt as though I'd been broken up with, even though we hadn't had an official relationship in the first place.

I didn't feel like being alone anymore, everything weighed down on me more if I wasn't distracted, so I opted to head to the place Steve would rarely show up to.

I walked into the lab, taking a seat beside a very focused Tony. I still had no idea what him or Bruce did in this lab, but I knew it must've taken quite some brain power. Their intelligence was something I was jealous of, but things involving science never truly struck my interest. After Tony had written down a few details on the piece of paper lying next to him, he swiveled his chair to face me.

"Any reason Cap's got his panties in a twist?"

"Nothing worth discussing." I let out a sigh and let my head slam against the desk, drawing Bruce's attention.

"We should go for a walk." Tony stood up, walking over and handing his notes to Bruce. "Handle this for me will ya, big guy?" Bruce smirked a bit, nodding at Tony before continuing on with his own work. Tony motioned for me to follow him, which I complied with. Maybe Tony could aggravate me and I'd be rid of this depressed feeling. I'd much rather be irritated with Tony compared to this heart breaking feeling…

I had lost the trust of not only the man I knew I loved, but my childhood hero. He had trusted me, and I had let him down. He had defended me, and I proved that I didn't deserve his trust.

The silence was comforting for a few minutes, Tony cracking a few jokes about Steve being an overprotective girlfriend and such. The mere mention of Steve only happened to bring back the guilty feeling however, and it managed to make me feel even worse than before. Maybe Tony wasn't as blunt and insensitive as I thought he was, for he stopped talking until we were standing in front of the training room.

Wow, I hadn't figured I would end up here; I guess when I was upset I was just too used to going here for comfort. I could heart heavy panting and the sound of a punching bag being throttled; I looked at Tony, and without a sound he guided me away from the cause of my pain and back towards the lab.

"You could do better you know."

"Tony…" I groaned, not wanting to hear this speech. "Don't do this to me. I don't even want to think about love or romance right now." He stopped walking, grabbing onto my hand and pulling me to face him. His eyes scanned my face for a moment, the serious expression on his face shocking me.

"You could live with me, you know. I could get you a job at Stark Tower, give you a roof over your head, I could give you anything you want." It was the first time in my mind that I registered the fact Tony might have something for me. That maybe his relentless teasing may have a deeper meaning for me that his newfound need to start a fight with Steve over anything and everything might've been because of jealousy. "I could give you the world, anything you wanted. Anything you needed."

"But you… You're not…"

"I'm not him." Tony let out a frustrated sigh, running his fingers through his hair. "The amazing Tony Stark finds himself a decent girl and she's in love with a super soldier. Do you feel guilty enough to love me yet or should I keep going?" He had a playful smile on his face now, patting my shoulder. "No worries, kid, can't help how you feel and who you like, right? I'll be sure to be more assertive with the next woman."

"Tony." I grabbed his hand, stopping him from going. I had a million things I could've said to him, but at the moment none of them seemed to be the right thing. When I thought of love, only Steve came to my mind. I couldn't lie to Tony and say I saw him in a way I didn't; it wasn't in my nature to do so which is why the situation involving Steve seemed to slowly grow worse. I couldn't use words to explain to him how I felt, so instead I used actions.

I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around Tony's neck and hugging him. I heard him chuckle softly, his arms encircling my waist as he hugged me back. I wanted to apologize to him, I wanted to ask him how he ever gained a crush on a ditz such as me, and I wanted to inform him that someone much more intelligent and charming was made for him. That certainly wasn't me.

I was the simple, hard working girl who wanted nothing more than to settle down with a man and raise a family. The life I had envisioned for myself in the future didn't fit with where Tony's life was going, and I wouldn't dare attempt to tear him away from all his hard work. We weren't meant to be; our lives were on different paths and my heart belonged to another. He was Tony Stark, sure enough he wouldn't be stuck on me long (I was still wondering why he was interested in the first place), and when he found a girl to settle down with, hopefully she'd be the right one.

"Thank you, Tony." I managed to whisper. "But I… have a few things I need to do before the days out."

"Understood, mother nature." Tony mockingly saluted me as he released me. "If Captain fails to realize what a hot soldier he's got, my bedroom door is always open. Remember that." Figuring that was the most romantic thing I'd ever get out of Tony, I couldn't help but smile as he walked back to the lab.

I took a deep breath as I walked down the hallway, wondering what I could possibly say to him to make him listen. Steve was kind, that was true, but it didn't mean he liked to be lied to. He wouldn't forgive me if I didn't have a good explanation, and coming clean about all of this... Maybe the only way to make him understand was to explain my life to him, to explain what I had discovered. Steve was no fool, and I could only hope he'd detect my sincerity.

I lingered by the door way and watched him for a few seconds; his movements were relentless against that poor punching bag. It dawned on me that maybe he was suffering too, but to what degree? Was he as upset as I was, or did he just feel annoyed at being lied to?

"Steve…" His arms dropped as soon as he heard my voice, but he didn't turn.

"Hello, ma'am. If I could request something of you… could you please allow me to be alone?" I could already feel my heart begin to crumble as I leaned against the doorway for balance. It had never crossed my mind that he'd tell me to leave, nor that he'd treat me as though he didn't know who I was.

"I know you're respectful, Steve, but I'm not. And we need to talk."

"I don't believe there's anything left to talk about, ma'am."

"Stop calling me ma'am, goddamn it!" Steve slowly turned around, an unreadable look on his face as he began to undo the wrappings around his hands.

"Then I'll leave you to your business." He began to walk towards the exit but I stopped him, placing my hands firmly on his chest. Even though I knew I didn't stand a chance if he actually tried to push past me, I was doing what I could to stop him before I got to speak.

"Not until we talk."

"I… need time." Steve backed away from my touch, looking down. "If you want we'll speak tomorrow, here, but after that…"

"I understand." I moved out of his way, biting my lip as my eyes began to tear. What kind of thing was I getting into? No matter how hard I tried to push, he wouldn't move. No matter how hard I tried to prove my case, he'd just reject me. Tomorrow would be my last chance to prove to him that I cared about him or else… Him and I would have no future together. "But I need you to think about one thing."

He didn't answer but I heard him stop walking.

"Why don't you read what's in my father's case file, in Fury's room. Maybe it's against your morals to lie and steal, but I only did what Fury had done to me."

I walked into the training room, grabbing a pair of bandages to wrap around my fists. I needed a way to keep my mind from him until tomorrow; maybe the punching bag could take my mind off of things until tomorrow.

Hope was the only thing I have left.


	19. Chapter 18

Night transitioned to day without me noticing; I could sleep either way, so I had stayed around the training room. It had brought my constantly buzzing mind momentary peace, but as the time to meet Steve approached, I could feel the anxiety begin to take over my thoughts. What if he didn't listen to me? What if he didn't care? Thinking about it now, I wasn't sure what I would do if he rejected me. I had been so self absorbed in my own negative thoughts that I hadn't noticed him approaching.

He cleared his throat, drawing my attention to him.

"How long have you been down here?" I was surprised he had addressed me first, and even more surprised that the uncaring tone he had been given me yesterday was replaced with a more worried one. My eyes lingered on him for a second, before I turned back to the punching bag. I couldn't bring myself to look at him anymore as what he said yesterday came back to mind.

Maybe I didn't deserve his trust.

"Awhile. If I could ask…" I cracked my knuckles, my hands were sore but the pain was beginning to fade to nothing compared to what I was feeling now. To have to deal with a pain such as this… A pain that was purely mental, one that couldn't just be brushed aside… "What made you decide to come and hear me out? I wasn't sure you were going to listen to me."

"I took your advice, and got the files from Fury himself. Stark and Dr. Banner both seemed to agree with you about Fury not being entirely trustworthy, and I took their word for it. I read through the file and I confronted Fury about it."

"Why would you do that?" I whipped around, eyes wide. I approached him quickly, hands on my hips. "Do you know what could happen if-"

"I didn't mention your mothers file; in fact, I put it back in your room where Natasha told me it was. She came to me and thought I should be the first to investigate why you were acting weirdly." Steve sighed, running his hands through his golden hair. "I'm sorry for doubting you. This mess between us is my fault, and if anything, it shows you that I-"

I didn't want to talk anymore, all talking did was cause misunderstandings that led to pain. So I did the first thing that came to mind, following my own philosophy of actions speaking louder than words; I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him down into a bruising kiss. He tried to soften the kiss by pulling back slightly, his hand resting on the back of my neck. His hands moved down to my back, keeping my in place and becoming a silent agreement that he wouldn't be going anywhere for the time being; the feeling of anxiety that had been building was quelled for the moment.

"Are you going to tell me the real reason for you coming now? I'm not a fool, and I don't believe that alone would make you come down to talk to me…" His expression turned darker, his eyes shifting to look down at the floor. After letting out a deep sigh, Steve leaned down so that his forehead was pressed against mine, our noses touching.

"I don't think I'd be able to stay sane if another person I cared about left my life." He smiled and I smiled back; it seemed smiles really were contagious.

"We're both hopeless, you know." I began to laugh at the absurdity of the situation; the more I realized that I was kissing my childhood hero the funnier it became. Who could honestly say this had ever happened to them? I was one in a million, a girl who had gotten to meet her hero, I was unnatural. But feeling the happiness it brought me now, I found all need for a normal life leaving me. There was nothing normal about me, and that was okay.

Because I had found someone who was seen as unnatural, just like me.

"We can be hopeless together." Steve chuckled. "If you forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive." I didn't want to leave the warm embrace he had had me in, but it was necessary. Unfortunately the two of us couldn't stay down here forever, and with the threat of Loki still lingering above our heads, we still had things that had to be done before we could rest. With a clearer mind, I thought again about Brianna down in the lab.

Questioning her, and getting any information from her that I could, would be my main mission.

"To what do I owe this visit?" Brianna smirked at me from behind her prison, her eyes glowing mischievously. It had been brought to my attention that no one had bothered questioning her, and the only contact she got was from the three meals a day that were delivered to her. She sat on the floor, day in and out, her knees pulled up to her chin and staring out as though waiting for something.

"If you have anything to confess now, just say it. The others won't be as nice as I am." She let out a laugh at this, shrill and uncaring. She tossed her head back, staring up at the ceiling with a bemused smile on her lips. It was when she faced me again that the smile left and was replaced with a hollow look.

"You want to know what's on my mind, then. You want to know what I think and dream about, doctor." She asked mockingly. Brianna stood up, walking up to the outside perimeter and placing her hand on the special glass. "Do you know what I think of at night? I think about the fact I killed another human being in cold blood. And do you know what happens afterward? I can't sleep."

"As more hours tick by of my pathetic life I begin to realize exactly while Loki calls us humans pathetic. Look at us. Look at how pathetic we are! Falling head over heels for pretty boys in tight suits, falling for men with God complexes, it's laughable how easily deceived we can be. And then it hurts because I had fooled myself into thinking that he really cared about me, and what I wanted. I thought that hurting you would bring me the peace I wanted, but it **didn't**." She clenched her fist.

"I'm so full of rage and hatred that I was blinded from what was really hurting me."

"I can understand that." I replied. "But you can help us now."

"I could." She looked towards me with a smirk. "But what fun would that be?"

"Still nothing?" Tony raised an eyebrow as I set foot into the lab, and I shook my head.

"Not a word about his plan has left her lips, but I can tell we're running out of time. She's still stalling for him."

"Wonder why that is." Tony shrugged his shoulders as he turned back to his computer, continuing what he had previously been doing. "What makes you think she'd crack so easily? Don't tell me you really thought she'd spill her guts to you on your first try."

My cheeks turned pink and I glared at the back of his head, wishing that I wasn't in a lab full of highly dangerous things so that I could throw something at his head without fear of everything around us bursting into flame. I chose to cross my arms and huff audibly, ignoring the snicker I got from him as I left the lab.

I felt like I was constantly being bounced back and forth all day, going to the agitating Brianna back to Tony in the lab for some tips on how to get information out of her. I eventually gave up, approaching Natasha and speaking to her about it. She was the skilled assassin that I didn't stand a chance against; perhaps she could get the information from her. I wasn't nearly as talented as she was yet, but in the future when we had more free time to ourselves, maybe she'd teach me a few things.

"Hey." Steve managed to grab a hold of me during a transition period, where my flustered self was heading back towards my room after a particularly embarrassing set of teasing remarks from Tony. "You and I have somewhere to go. Fury said this was the last time you'd have a chance to see your mother, and I thought you'd like that."

"You'll come with me?" He nodded. "It sounds good, then."

"Let's talk about something." Steve had taken control of the plane they'd given us to fly out with, and was now heading towards our destination as we spoke. He had admitted that these planes were enough like the ones he had flown back when he was at war that he could control them rather well, so we didn't need a pilot to accompany us. Fury had set a short time limit, in my opinion anyway, and had told us to come back prepared for battle.

"Like what?"

"Anything. I like the sound of your voice." He smiled while I blushed, looking down at my lap. What was there to speak about?

"How about I completely embarrass myself and I tell you why you've always been my hero." His cheeks turned pink from embarrassment, but he nodded.

"If that's what you want to be honest about, go ahead." I could detect the hint of curiosity in his tone. Well, Steve was still a man and probably enjoyed a good stroke to his ego every once in awhile, so I might as well embarrass myself while doing so.

"You've always been my hero because it's hard to find a guy out there who's selfless and amazing like you are." I could feel the blush on my cheeks rising. "I look up to you because you have all the qualities I want to have, and when I look at you, you give me hope. You give me the hope that I even though I'm young and abnormal, that I can help those who need help and become a hero."

"If you wanted to find someone selfless and amazing, you could've just looked in a mirror." He replied with a warm smile that made my heart melt. I turned redder, and I turned away so that he couldn't see the blooming smile on my face. For such a cheesy line, it meant a lot when it was coming from him.

"If you keep saying things like that Captain, I might actually start to believe you."

"You should believe me anyway." His light hearted tone was enough to cause the butterflies lying dormant in my stomach to start fluttering again. My face was going to be permanently red; I did my best to give him a smile but found it was entirely too awkward for me to handle. It only took one look into those deep pools of blue to feel better and much more confident; Steve was my saving grace, whether we were fighting or not.

"I know the timing may be inappropriate." I turned to Steve with a raised eyebrow. "I was wondering if you'd allow me to take you to dinner and a movie after all of this is over. Just you and me." It took me a second to process exactly what he was asking me, but when I had figured it out, a bright smile made its way to my face, one that couldn't be easily wiped away.

"I would love to go on a date with you, Steve."

Maybe there was still hope for us yet.


End file.
